There’s value to Mariners keeping Luis Castillo in rotation

The plan the Seattle Mariners are currently deploying with their pitching staff has been a hot topic of discussion among fans in the Pacific Northwest and around baseball in general.

Tim Kurkjian details how the WBC didn’t help Cal Raleigh

The M’s are having each of the six starting pitchers on their 26-man roster take a turn participating in a piggyback start up until the All-Star break next month, with two starters pitching on the same day once during each five-game turn through the rotation.

The plan began last week as Bryce Miller and Luis Castillo took part in the first of three planned piggybacks. Logan Gilbert will start the next one Saturday with Emerson Hancock set to follow in a relief. And the next turn through the rotation will presumably see a combination of George Kirby and Bryan Woo in the piggyback strategy.

This comes after the M’s already had Miller and Castillo pitch in piggyback situations three times after Miller returned from the injured list on May 13, and after Seattle went to a six-man rotation for one turn.

The decision to return to the piggyback has stirred up some controversy, with much of that centering around Castillo. The veteran right-hander, who is under contract through next season and due to make $24.15 million in 2027, has struggled through much of this season with a 5.22 ERA, which is at least one run higher than the team’s other five starting options.

There’s a belief with some that the Mariners are using their piggyback strategy as a way to appease Castillo, but former MLB pitcher Ryan Rowland-Smith believes there’s more to it than that. He detailed why when he joined Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob on Monday.

Rowland-Smith acknowledged that there is a level of respect the franchise is likely trying to show Castillo because of the impact he’s had since arriving via trade during the 2022 season, but said there is also value in keeping Castillo stretched out as a starter.

“(When) you get to that trade deadline, they may pull the trigger where (another) team says, ‘You know what, man? We need Luis Castillo,” Rowland-Smith said. “(If) he’s just been sitting in the bullpen for two months, it’s not the same value. The value’s a little different if he’s actually pitching stretched out.

“And I’m not saying they’re going to trade him. I’m just saying, hypothetically, if it is a logjam and (prospects) Kade Anderson and Ryan Sloan keep doing what they’re doing, well, then guess what? You’ve got someone who’s stretched out or you have someone who is in a situation where you can get a little bit more crafty here to have that stretch run.”

What could impact market for Castillo?

Castillo’s declining performance and the amount of money he’s owed through next season could be a deterrent for teams looking for starting pitching at the trade deadline. The M’s have also been reluctant to deal from their starting pitching. But Yahoo Sports’ Jordan Shusterman can see a scenario where Castillo does get dealt this year. He just doesn’t view it as very likely.

“I think it’s going to depend on how much other pitching ends up being on the move to where a team would be that interested in considering him as an option,” Shusterman told Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy on Wednesday. “It would not shock me if he is traded this deadline, but I don’t think it’s Plan A. I don’t think that they’re just like, (we) can’t wait to offload him. But depending on how the rest of the starting pitching market shakes out and which other teams could be in the mix there, I think it’s at least plausible he could be on the move before the end of the season.”

How Castillo’s trade value could rise in offseason

Bump and Stacy producer Curtis Rogers brought up an interesting point about Castillo’s potential trade value on Tuesday, which is that it may actually rise in the offseason.

MLB recently proposed a salary floor for teams of $171.2 million during its first set of proposals sent to the players association for a new collective bargaining agreement. That number may change throughout negotiations, and a salary floor may never come to fruition. But if it did at the $171.2 million figure, there are 13 teams who are more than $20 million below that threshold this season, per Spotrac.

“If you get to the offseason and he is still in a Mariner uniform, all of a sudden now just helping these teams hit their salary floor, that’s a piece that could absolutely get moved in the offseason if there is a salary floor that gets agreed upon in the CBA,” Rogers said.

“Now that’s going to take a lot of negotiations, probably there is a lockout at some point, too. But that is something you’ve got to keep in mind is that yes, Luis Castillo, for as tough of a season as this has been on him, could actually hold some value in the offseason.”

Listen to Wyman and Bob weekdays from 2-7 p.m. and Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Seattle Sports 710 AM, or find the the podcasts on the Seattle Sports app. 

Seattle Mariners news and more

• Passan: Kade Anderson a ‘generational gift’ to Seattle Mariners
• 2 pitches from Seattle Mariners starters jump out to Rowland-Smith
• Seattle Mariners’ biggest problem compounded by bad luck

Related

Rob Refsnyder may have retired over joining Mariners rivalRick Rizzs ‘still walking on a cloud’ after Mariners HOF revealMariners claim pitcher away from AL West rival Texas RangersReport: D-backs to DFA former Mariners closer Paul SewaldM’s trade addition Boston Smith hits 5 HRs in first 6 games with AA ArkansasAL-best Rays beat Mariners 4-1 to complete sweep