Jim Goulart

2/2/22: Happy 29th Birthday, RHP Adrian Houser! MLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) We'll tend to focus more on the details and current status of Milwaukee's minor leaguers in this thread. That said, we certainly won't avoid wishing the big-league Brewers well, and today that's Adrian Houser. How fitting that the ground ball specialist, who once again dazzled in that category in 2021, a 59.0% ground ball percentage, second among starting pitchers to only the Giants' Logan Webb (61.7%), is the only current player in the organization born on Groundhog Day. Here's a minor league tidbit on Houser -- an incredible five teams that he played for no longer exist: Greeneville in the Appalachian League Tri-City in the NY-Penn League Quad Cities in the Midwest League Lancaster in the California League Colorado Springs in the Pacific Coast League One final minor league note - how fortunate were the Brewers that Adrian was assigned a 4th minor league option year to allow him to continue a proper development pace? Players typically have three option years, but those who have accrued less than five full seasons (including both the Major and Minors) are eligible for a fourth if their three options have been exhausted already. *** As far as 2021 goes, September 4th was surely a special night! 'He’s getting better': Houser's impressive '21 Adam McCalvy, MLB.com *** Also in 2021, well hello there, Daniel Castano! *** Heading to 2019 for a that well, is painted with vivid color *** Finally, Baseball Reference, can we update your nickname notation on Adrian's page? It's not spelled Doogy.

Brief workout and discussion VIDEO begins at the 00:50 second mark. Rooting for all the farmhands, Andre Nnebe has work to do, hadn't realized his K rate was nearly 47% in 203 AB's in his part-time role with the Mudcats last year. This is the age 24 season coming up for Milwaukee's 28th round pick in 2019 out of Santa Clara University.

Sunday 1/30: Via Matt Pauley's Brewers Extra Innings Podcast: This week's show features a conversation with "WTMJ Nights" host Scott Warras Latest Milwaukee Tailgate Podcast *** Monday 1/31: Locked on Brewers: Mailbag episode "Reviewing the Brew's" Cold Brew Podcast - Will Sammon of The Athletic is the guest *** Tuesday 2/1 Locked on Brewers: Sophia Minnaert is the interview guest

1/31/22: Happy 17th Birthday, LHP Wande Torres! Just signed on January 15th out of the Dominican Republic, the southpaw is listed at 6'3", 190. And at that age, still growing that frame, wow. MLB.com lists Torres' bonus as $38,700. How do these kids already have a baseball card line? Anyway, there's your photo. *** After a day off Tuesday, the Birthday Thread returns on Groundhog Day, and a player befitting that day's association.

1/31/22: Happy 19th Birthday, C Blayberg Diaz! MiLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) Hey Brewers fans (well, you're here, you must be!) - Jeferson Quero wasn't the only 18-year-old Venezuelan catcher in Maryvale to catch (pun intended) the eyes of Milwaukee brass. Blayberg Diaz (theme of the thread) is the only "Blayberg" in the history of pro baseball. Pirates should have signed him, no? An unheralded part of the July 2nd 2019 international class, Baseball America mentioned that fall that Diaz was "trending up". That would have come from camp reports, as Diaz did not get to formally debut until this 2021 season. That's a pretty 113 at-bats (.283/.354/.416 - .770 OPS). Diaz fanned in only 19.5% of his at-bats, and the four Arizona Complex home runs is nice to see. While the eight walks were a bit underwhelming, add in five HBP's and suddenly the OBP makes sense. In 27 games behind the plate (26 starts), Diaz threw out 30.8% of baserunners (12-of-39). He did have nine passed balls but guiding Maryvale arms can be frustrating. The young backstop finished strong, posting an .812 OPS in 46 August at-bats and an .885 OPS in 24 September at-bats. Diaz has also turned up at camp for the Cardenales de Lara in the Venezuelan Winter League. As we often see with very young players, Diaz did not get formal at-bats in-season, but his time with the older players should prove invaluable. Here he is pictured in his Lara uniform. Fine photos here: Via Jerry Espinoza Photography Via Phrake Photography VIDEO: Sweet swing! For a more extended look (just missing numerous fouls straight back before connecting): In the pre-MiLB consolidation world, Diaz would be a prime candidate for "Advanced Rookie" ball in 2022, aka the Rocky Mountain Vibes. As is, there probably isn't room to squeeze him onto Carolina's catching corps. But Diaz could easily be overlooked by fans given Jeferson Quero's prospect status. Certainly, the Brewers must be pleased with Blayberg's debut with the organization.

1/31/22: Happy 27th Birthday, RHP Robbie Baker! MiLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) Baker parlayed a strong independent ball performance in 2021 with the Grand Junction Rockies of the Pioneer League, which is now a "partner league" of MLB, to sign with the Brewers on August 13th. Baker would then perform solidly in 11 relief appearances for the low-A Carolina Mudcats, where admittedly he was over four years older than the average pitcher in the league. Three of those appearances extended to three innings each. Baker's road to Milwaukee: Fine article on Baker signing with the Red Sox as an undrafted fifth-year senior with the University of Richmond Baker's two summers in the Boston system were solid enough, but not enough to avoid the major paring of players across MiLB in spring of 2020 due to the Covid cancellation. Read into this as you will, as the pitching breakdown is over two years old, but SoxProspects.com does their usual detailed analysis here. Baker was closer to age of competition with Grand Junction (1.8 years older). As noted in these two tweets from the Rockies and backed up by the stat line in the first link above, Baker dominated. VIDEO evidence VIDEO (via Facebook Watch, three minutes): "Pioneer Baseball League sat down with Robbie Baker last week and asked him about his time with the GJ Rockies and the PBL" A condensed version of that interview is shown here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EptEgIyIcFI Baker won't be back in Low-A to begin 2022. An assignment with the Timber Rattlers may not push him enough based on age, and a Biloxi placement to begin the season can't be ruled out.

The Jesse Sanchez Brewers int'l. draft class article now includes bonus $ for all 33 signed. Three over a million, four others in six figures. 20 got $10,000, one $5,000 (c'mon, get him his 10K!). Appears team has $192,800 left from its $5,721,500 pool

1/31/22: Happy 17th Birthday, LHP Wande Torres! Just signed on January 15th out of the Dominican Republic, southpaw is listed at 6'3", 190. And at that age, still growing that frame, wow. MLB.com lists Torres' bonus as $38,700. How do these kids already have a baseball card line? Anyway, there's your photo.

1/31/22: Happy 19th Birthday, C Blayberg Diaz! MiLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) Hey Brewers fans (well, you're here, you must be!) - Jeferson Quero wasn't the only 18-year-old Venezuelan catcher in Maryvale to catch (pun intended) the eyes of Milwaukee brass. Blayberg Diaz (theme of the thread) is the only "Blayberg" in the history of pro baseball. Pirates should have signed him, no? An unheralded part of the July 2nd 2019 international class, Baseball America mentioned that fall that Diaz was "trending up". That would have come from camp reports, as Diaz did not get to formally debut until this 2021 season. That's a pretty 113 at-bats (.283/.354/.416 - .770 OPS). Diaz fanned in only 19.5% of his at-bats, and the four Arizona Complex home runs is nice to see. While the eight walks were a bit underwhelming, add in five HBP's and suddenly the OBP makes sense. In 27 games behind the plate (26 starts), Diaz threw out 30.8% of baserunners (12-of-39). He did have nine passed balls but guiding Maryvale arms can be frustrating. The young backstop finished strong, posting an .812 OPS in 46 August at-bats and an .885 OPS in 24 September at-bats. Diaz has also turned up at camp for the Cardenales de Lara in the Venezuelan Winter League. As we often see with very young players, Diaz did not get formal at-bats in-season, but his time with the older players should prove invaluable. Here he is pictured in his Lara uniform. Fine photos here: Via Jerry Espinoza Photography Via Phrake Photography VIDEO: Sweet swing! For a more extended look (just missing numerous fouls straight back before connecting): In the pre-MiLB consolidation world, Diaz would be a prime candidate for "Advanced Rookie" ball, aka the Rocky Mountain Vibes. As is, there probably isn't room to squeeze him onto Carolina's catching corps. But Diaz could easily be overlooked by fans given Jeferson Quero's prospect status. Certainly, the Brewers must be pleased with Blayberg's debut with the organization.

1/31/22: Happy 27th Birthday, RHP Robbie Baker! MiLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) Baker parlayed a strong independent ball performance in 2021 with the Grand Junction Rockies of the Pioneer League, which is now a "partner league" of MLB, to sign with the Brewers on August 13th. Baker would then perform solidly in 11 relief appearances for the low-A Carolina Mudcats, where admittedly he was over four years older than the average pitcher in the league. Three of those appearances extended to three innings each. Baker's road to Milwaukee: Fine August 2018 article on Baker signing with the Red Sox as an undrafted fifth-year senior with the University of Richmond Baker's two summers in the Boston system were solid enough, but not enough to avoid the major paring of players across MiLB in spring of 2020 due to the Covid cancellation. Read into this as you will, as the pitching breakdown is over two years old, but SoxProspects.com does their usual detailed analysis here. Baker was closer to age of competition with Grand Junction (1.8 years older). As noted in these two tweets from the Rockies and backed up by the stat line in the first link above, Baker dominated. VIDEO evidence VIDEO (via Facebook Watch, three minutes): "Pioneer Baseball League sat down with Robbie Baker last week and asked him about his time with the GJ Rockies and the PBL" A condensed version of that interview is shown here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EptEgIyIcFI Baker won't be back in Low-A to begin 2022. An assignment with the Timber Rattlers may not push him enough based on age, and a Biloxi placement to begin the season can't be ruled out.

Extended December interview with INF/OF Noah Campbell (Mudcats '21) Campbell, very-well spoken, details his baseball journey from youngster to his debut season in the Brewers system, a season played basically in his backyard. Interesting story on how he and Milwaukee navigated the $20,000 bonus limit for players signed after the five-round 2020 pandemic draft (medical school future coverage). Fun story about how he prepared to play all nine positions in the season finale (had never caught before). Just the latest Brewer farmhand to learn about via these long-form conversations.

This had an incorrect link when initially posted.

Thursday 1/27: Locked on Brewers Games of the Year Countdown -- #8 and #7 *** WTMJ's Brewers Weekly with Greg Matzek hosting - Guest is Tom Haudricourt

OF Sal Frelick via a Twitter Spaces recording

1/28/22: Happy 17th Birthday, OF Reminton Batista! Just signed on January 15th out of the Dominican Republic, the switch-hitting Batista, listed by the Brewers as a right-fielder, is listed at 5'10", 175. He's a RH arm. He's pictured on the left in each of these recent Twitter photos. EDIT: $10,000 bonus *** The Birthday Thread returns to action on Monday, January 31st.

1/28/22: Happy 19th Birthday, LHP Junior Castillo! MiLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) Apparently, particularly in recent seasons, it hasn't been easy for the Brewers to sign left-handed pitching talent for their Dominican Academy. So, it was nice to see that four of the twelve pitchers brought on board in the latest January international signing period were southpaws. In 2021, the lack of LH pitching in the Dominican was taken to an extreme. Only three lefty's took the mound between the two Milwaukee squads, which tended to carry between 17 and 19 arms each during the season. Two of the LHP's saw action only in relief. Leoni De La Cruz dazzled in his first pro season and received a mid-year bump to Maryvale. Of note is that De La Cruz was an exceptionally "late" debut, and will turn 24 years old in May. The other LH reliever was Albert Caldera, who completed his 2nd season toiling on the island (2019, then Covid idleness). Only one LHP made even a single start for a Brewers Dominican squad in 2021, and he's our birthday subject today. Junior Castillo made starts in seven of his 13 appearances. The Dominican-native Castillo only signed with Milwaukee on May 10th of last year. So, he wasn't part of the January 15, 2021 initial signing group, but was inked for what one would imagine at that point was short money from the remains of the Brewers' international signing pool (also, bonuses of $10,000 or less are exempt from the pool). The pro debut for Castillo came in relief and was pretty darn impressive. Be sure to click that link because that game (the 2nd commented on in the post, was noted at the time for Junior's teammate's unique accomplishment). In Castillo's first four pro games, all in relief, he would toss a combined 8.2 scoreless innings, 3 H, 2 BB, 7 K. By appearance #6, the Brewers figured "we need to see this young man in a starting role". It was a mixed bag. Castillo's first start (August 3rd) saw him touched up for four runs in 2.2 innings. He'd bounce back a week later (3 IP, 1 R). Then came an 18-day gap before his next mound effort (3 IP, 5 R). Castillo's ERA had bumped to 5.89 over 19.1 innings at that point. But then came five September/October appearances (four starts and then an extended relief appearance to conclude his season). The first of the five was a start against the Brewers' other DSL club - 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 5 K. Castillo allowed the two runs in the 1st inning. Junior ran with those final four scoreless innings and followed it up with 18 additional innings without giving up an earned run. So yes, Castillo ended 2021 with a run of 22 frames in which his ERA was 0.00 (two unearned runs). He notched his first pro win in that final four-inning relief appearance. That brought his season ERA down to 3.05 (1.19 WHIP), which you saw when you checked out the link to open this post. Here's Castillo's game log, by the way. Tempering enthusiasm? Walks, even during that extended scoreless stretch (21 on the season in 41.1 IP). But folks, it was his age 18 debut season. If nothing else, one to watch for sure. And a portsider to boot, yay! One would think even at just age 19, that final stretch will see Castillo in Maryvale to begin 2022. We'll know in a few months.

1/27/22: Happy 19th Birthday, OF Mendy Ferreira! MiLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) Signed out of the Dominican Republic at age 16 with the July 2nd, 2019 class, the right-handed hitting outfielder had to wait over two years to make his pro debut this past summer on July 17th, when he notched his first pro hit and stolen base. There is no news on Ferreira's signing bonus, thus it is not believed to be significant. The stolen base part of the equation would be a theme of his season. Ferreira posted a somewhat eye-raising line of .195/.380/.256. In 38 games and 82 at-bats (108 plate appearances), Ferreira swiped 16 bases in 19 tries. He drew 24 walks (one HBP). His low slugging was more representative of his batting average as five of his 16 hits were doubles, we imagine of the speed variety rather than the gap variety. Unfortunately, Ferreira K'd in 41.5 of his at-bats. As late as September 18th, Ferreira's line was .233/.420/.300 (.720 OPS), but he ended his season with a 2-for-22 stretch (nine K's). Defensively, 20 of Ferreira's 29 starts came in center field, and he played errorless ball on the season. Ferreira's speed must have contributed to his .327 average on balls in play, and it's that speed that will likely keep Ferreira in the organization for 2022 despite the influx of signings from this January, almost assuredly still in the Dominican Summer League for his age 19 season. This photo from Mendy's Twitter account is from February 2020, so shortly after he turned 17. On the cusp of a blizzard nor'easter in my world, that Dominican palm trees skyline sure looks enticing. *** Back tomorrow (Friday the 28th) with an under-the-radar youngster who finished his debut season with a flourish...

A great read on the youngest of the Crew's picks, Dominican SS Donis Rodriguez

1/28/22: Happy 17th Birthday, OF Reminton Batista! Just signed on January 15th out of the Dominican Republic, the switch-hitting Batista, listed by the Brewers as a right-fielder, is listed at 5'10", 175. He's a RH arm. He's pictured on the left in each of these recent Twitter photos. *** The Birthday Thread returns to action on Monday, January 31st.

1/28/22: Happy 19th Birthday, LHP Junior Castillo! MiLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) Apparently, particularly in recent seasons, it hasn't been easy for the Brewers to sign left-handed pitching talent for their Dominican Academy. So, it was nice to see that four of the twelve pitchers brought on board in the latest January international signing period were southpaws. In 2021, the lack of LH pitching in the Dominican was taken to an extreme. Only three lefty's took the mound between the two Milwaukee squads, which tended to carry between 17 and 19 arms each during the season. Two of the LHP's saw action only in relief. Leoni De La Cruz dazzled in his first pro season and received a mid-year bump to Maryvale. Of note is that De La Cruz was an exceptionally "late" debut, and will turn 24 years old in May. The other LH reliever was Albert Caldera, who completed his 2nd season toiling on the island (2019, then Covid idleness). Only one LHP made even a single start for a Brewers Dominican squad in 2021, and he's our birthday subject today. Junior Castillo made starts in seven of his 13 appearances. The Dominican-native Castillo only signed with Milwaukee on May 10th of last year. So, he wasn't part of the January 15, 2021 initial signing group, but was inked for what one would imagine at that point was short money from the remains of the Brewers' international signing pool (also, bonuses of $10,000 or less are exempt from the pool). The pro debut for Castillo came in relief and was pretty darn impressive. Be sure to click that link because that game (the 2nd commented on in the post, was noted at the time for Junior's teammate's unique accomplishment). In Castillo's first four pro games, all in relief, he would toss a combined 8.2 scoreless innings, 3 H, 2 BB, 7 K. By appearance #6, the Brewers figured "we need to see this young man in a starting role". It was a mixed bag. Castillo's first start (August 3rd) saw him touched up for four runs in 2.2 innings. He'd bounce back a week later (3 IP, 1 R). Then came an 18-day gap before his next mound effort (3 IP, 5 R). Castillo's ERA had bumped to 5.89 over 19.1 innings at that point. But then came five September/October appearances (four starts and then an extended relief appearance to conclude his season). The first of the five was a start against the Brewers' other DSL club - 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 5 K. Castillo allowed the two runs in the 1st inning. Junior ran with those final four scoreless innings and followed it up with 18 additional innings without giving up an earned run. So yes, Castillo ended 2021 with a run of 22 frames in which his ERA was 0.00 (two unearned runs). He notched his first pro win in that final four-inning relief appearance. That brought his season ERA down to 3.05 (1.19 WHIP), which you saw when you checked out the link to open this post. Here's Castillo's game log, by the way. Tempering enthusiasm? Walks, even during that extended scoreless stretch (21 on the season in 41.1 IP). But folks, it was his age 18 debut season. If nothing else, one to watch for sure. And a portsider to boot, yay! One would think even at just age 19, that final stretch will see Castillo in Maryvale to begin 2022. We'll know in a few months.

Sunday 1/23: Via Matt Pauley's Brewers Extra Innings Podcast: This week's show features a conversation with Jim Goulart of Brewerfan.net Latest Milwaukee Tailgate Podcast *** Monday 1/24: Locked on Brewers: Mailbag episode *** Tuesday 1/25 Locked on Brewers: Charlie Greene, Minor League Field Coordinator and Catching Coordinator, is the interview guest

1/27/22: Happy 19th Birthday, OF Mendy Ferreira! MiLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) Signed out of the Dominican Republic at age 16 with the July 2nd, 2019 class, the right-handed hitting outfielder had to wait over two years to make his pro debut this past summer on July 17th, when he notched his first pro hit and stolen base. There is no news on Ferreira's signing bonus, thus it is not believed to be significant. The stolen base part of the equation would be a theme of his season. Ferreira posted a somewhat eye-raising line of .195/.380/.256. In 38 games and 82 at-bats (108 plate appearances), Ferreira swiped 16 bases in 19 tries. He drew 24 walks (one HBP). His low slugging was more representative of his batting average as five of his 16 hits were doubles, we imagine of the speed variety rather than the gap variety. Unfortunately, Ferreira K'd in 41.5 of his at-bats. As late as September 18th, Ferreira's line was .233/.420/.300 (.720 OPS), but he ended his season with a 2-for-22 stretch (nine K's). Defensively, 20 of Ferreira's 29 starts came in center field, and he played errorless ball on the season. Ferreira's speed must have contributed to his .327 average on balls in play, and it's that speed that will likely keep Ferreira in the organization for 2022 despite the influx of signings from this January, almost assuredly still in the Dominican Summer League for his age 19 season. This photo from Mendy's Twitter account is from February 2020, so shortly after he turned 17. On the cusp of a blizzard nor'easter in my world, that Dominican palm trees skyline sure looks enticing. *** Back tomorrow with an under-the-radar youngster who finished his debut season with a flourish...

1/25/22: Happy 21st Birthday, INF Daniel Castillo! MiLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) Via Baseball America on Milwaukee's 2017 international signing class: "The Brewers signed Venezuelan shortstop Daniel Castillo, a 16-year-old who trained with Carlos Guillen, for $140,000 on July 2. An instinctive player, Castillo is 5-foot-11, 155 pounds and projects as a true shortstop. He’s an average runner with good actions, soft hands and good range to both sides. Castillo has a strong arm and the ability to make sharp throws from different angles, with a knack for being in the right place at the right time. At the plate, Castillo doesn’t have much power right now, but he’s a switch-hitter who can spray the ball to all fields." *At some point, perhaps to begin his pro career, Castillo abandoned LH-hitting, now a RH batter only. Still primarily a shortstop (103 starts vs. 18 at second base and 13 at third base over three pro seasons - lost 2020 of course), Castillo debuted as the primary shortstop on his 2018 Dominican Summer League team but struggled with a .212/.328/.241 line (.570 OPS, 9 SB, 8 CS). Bumped up to Maryvale in 2019, all 40 of Castillo's starts came as a shortstop, but his .541 OPS reflected more offensive difficulty, though still young for the competition. Castillo committed a combined 37 errors in 95 games over those two seasons. Looks like this would be fall instructional camp in Maryvale Returning to the field in 2021, Castillo surprisingly was on AA Biloxi's roster, though that seemed like a temporary "need" placement from the start - he'd go 1-for-7 (one walk, one K) over four games with the Shuckers. In what appeared to be a paper move, Castillo was assigned to the Maryvale complex, but he'd be playing for the low-A Carolina squad just a week later, where he'd remain until mid-July when the Maryvale assignment was real through the rest of the season. Though Castillo would post another sub-par OPS in the relatively small 72 at-bat Mudcats sample, thanks to the efforts of the always-diligent Mudcats' media/highlight team, several key moments are available for viewing. First on defense: Voice of the Mudcats Greg Young loved this play in the hole First hit as a Mudcat "There's only one way to celebrate your first career home run and it's to flip the bat into another dimension" Go-ahead double "Three-run SINGLE to take the lead late, that's rare, this team is fun!" 2021 Maryvale Photos via Phrake Photography Did those moments in full-season benefit Castillo? Daniel would skyrocket his OPS in 63 Maryvale at-bats to end his regular season, jumping all the way to .842 in the smallish but promising sample. With so much shortstop talent in the system, including the lower levels, Castillo's role in 2022 will likely be from a reserve perspective, with a bench spot in Carolina a possibility for his age 21 year. Fangraphs has been high on his physical projection, though tempered expectations otherwise. *** Back on Thursday the 27th...

1/25/22: Happy 21st Birthday, INF Daniel Castillo! MiLB Player Page (Baseball Reference page always linked above in the birthday greeting) Via Baseball America on Milwaukee's 2017 international signing class: "The Brewers signed Venezuelan shortstop Daniel Castillo, a 16-year-old who trained with Carlos Guillen, for $140,000 on July 2. An instinctive player, Castillo is 5-foot-11, 155 pounds and projects as a true shortstop. He’s an average runner with good actions, soft hands and good range to both sides. Castillo has a strong arm and the ability to make sharp throws from different angles, with a knack for being in the right place at the right time. At the plate, Castillo doesn’t have much power right now, but he’s a switch-hitter who can spray the ball to all fields." *At some point, perhaps to begin his pro career, Castillo abandoned LH-hitting, now a RH batter only. Still primarily a shortstop (103 starts vs. 18 at second base and 13 at third base over three pro seasons - lost 2020 of course), Castillo debuted as the primary shortstop on his 2018 Dominican Summer League team but struggled with a .212/.328/.241 line (.570 OPS, 9 SB, 8 CS). Bumped up to Maryvale in 2019, all 40 of Castillo's starts came as a shortstop, but his .541 OPS reflected more offensive difficulty, though still young for the competition. Castillo committed a combined 37 errors in 95 games over those two seasons. Looks like this would be fall instructional camp in Maryvale Returning to the field in 2021, Castillo surprisingly was on AA Biloxi's roster, though that seemed like a temporary "need" placement from the start - he'd go 1-for-7 (one walk, one K) over four games with the Shuckers. In what appeared to be a paper move, Castillo was assigned to the Maryvale complex, but he'd be playing for the low-A Carolina squad just a week later, where he'd remain until mid-July when the Maryvale assignment was real through the rest of the season. Though Castillo would post another sub-par OPS in the relatively small 72 at-bat Mudcats sample, thanks to the efforts of the always-diligent Mudcats' media/highlight team, several key moments are available for viewing. First on defense: Voice of the Mudcats Greg Young loved this play in the hole First hit as a Mudcat "There's only one way to celebrate your first career home run and it's to flip the bat into another dimension" Go-ahead double "Three-run SINGLE to take the lead late, that's rare, this team is fun!" 2021 Maryvale Photos via Phrake Photography Did those moments in full-season benefit Castillo? Daniel would skyrocket his OPS in 63 Maryvale at-bats to end his regular season, jumping all the way to .842 in the smallish but promising sample. With so much shortstop talent in the system, including the lower levels, Castillo's role in 2022 will likely be from a reserve perspective, with a bench spot in Carolina a possibility for his age 21 year. Fangraphs has been high on his physical projection, though tempered expectations otherwise. *** Back on Thursday the 27th...

Tom Haudricourt discusses his retirement - January 20th via 97.3's Drew & KB (go to the 45:15 hour/minute mark)