Although he was marred by inconsistency in 2021, Adrian Del Castillo remains one of the top catching prospects ahead of the MLB Draft. His bat appeals to scouts more than his defense. The same was the case when the Chicago White Sox drafted him in 2018.
The 41st-ranked prospect has seen his stock slip from the beginning of the season, but he put together a good career at the University of Miami. In 131 games, he slashed .311/.410/.499.
Strengths
Adrian Del Castillo stands at 5’11 and 208 pounds, and he possesses an impressive left-handed swing. Although he hit .275/.380/.395 in 2021, there is a lot to like in his offensive profile. Scouts grade his hit tool a 55/80. He goes a great job at barreling balls up, and his approach leads a lot of walks. In fact, he walked 10 more times than he struck out in his career at the University of Miami.
Although his power tool does not jump off the board, Del Castillo can drive the ball and produce a extra-base hits. Of his 152 career hits at the University of Miami, he recorded 56 extra-base hits. The power wasn’t quite there in 2021, but he did hit 14 home runs in just under 350 plate appearances at the start of his college career.
Defensively, the best aspect of his game is a strong, usually accurate throwing arm that scouts grade a 50/80.
Weaknesses
While his arm is the best aspect of his defense, Adrian Del Castillo has concerns with his receiving skills. There were questions in high school about his ability to stay behind home plate long term. His arm has developed since then to get to where it is at right now, but it is still not enough to overcome his receiving where he snaps at balls too quickly.
Additionally, his struggles in 2021 and with a wood bat are worrisome. His numbers were way down in every offensive category, It was also his only season as a Hurricane where he struck out more than he walked. The only other time he struggled that badly at the plate was in 2019 when he played with a wood bat in the Cape Cod League.
While he did hit five home runs in 37 games that summer, his slashline was .261/.311/.420, and his strikeouts were way up with 32 compared to nine walks in 148 plate appearances. This is not ideal as it is the biggest sample of Del Castillo hitting with a wood bat available since he started college.
MLB Comp
There isn’t a catcher who’s offensive profile accurately matches that of Adrian Del Castillo in MLB right now. However, Chicago White Sox catcher Yasmani Grandal has a similar approach at the plate. Even though he is hitting .188, he is drawing a lot of walks. Entering play on July 6, Grandal has almost as many walks as he does strikeouts.
That trend is evident when he is playing at his best level where his two All-Star seasons are ones where his walk totals are not too, too far off from his strikeouts totals. Del Castillo likely will not walk more than he strikes out for his entire professional career, but expect his walk totals to be close to his strike out totals as they are for Grandal in his best seasons.
In terms of size, Del Castillo compares well to Boston Red Sox catcher Christian Vazquez. Vazquez stands at 5’9, weighing 205 pounds. Although their skill sets do mot match up, Vazquez is an example of a shorter catcher having success in MLB.
Players mentioned: Adrian Del Castillo, Yasmani Grandal, Christian Vazquez
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
