Willi Rafael Castro Capellan (born April 24, 1997) is a Puerto Rican

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

second baseman,

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

, and

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...

for the Minnesota Twins of

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB). He made his MLB debut with the Detroit Tigers in 2019.

Career

Cleveland Indians

Castro signed with the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

as an international free agent in July 2013. He made his professional debut in 2014 with the

Arizona League Indians The Arizona Complex League Guardians are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Goodyear Ballpark in Goodyear, Arizona. The team is c ...

and spent the whole season there, batting .239 with two home runs and 11 RBIs in 43 games. He played 2015 with the

Mahoning Valley Scrappers The Mahoning Valley Scrappers are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Niles, Ohio, a city in the valley of the Mahoning River, and play their home games at Eastwood Field. From 1999 to 2020, they were ...

, where he batted .264 with one home run, 25 RBIs and twenty stolen bases, and 2016 with the

Lake County Captains The Lake County Captains are a Minor League Baseball team in Eastlake, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, that plays in the Midwest League as the High-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. The Captains joined the Class A Midwest League following ...

and

Lynchburg Hillcats The Lynchburg Hillcats are a Minor League Baseball team in Lynchburg, Virginia that plays in the Carolina League and is the Single-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They were a farm team of the Atlanta Braves from 2011 to 2014, the Cincinna ...

, posting a combined .258 batting average with seven home runs and 49 RBIs. In 2017, Castro played for Lynchburg where he batted .290 with a career-high 11 home runs along with 58 RBIs, 19 stolen bases and a .761 OPS. The Indians added him to their 40-man roster after the season.

MLB.com MLB.com is the official site of Major League Baseball and is overseen by Major League Baseball Advanced Media, L.P. (a subsidiary of MLB). MLB.com is a source of baseball-related information, including baseball news, statistics, and sports column ...

ranked Castro as Cleveland's fifth-best prospect going into the 2018 season. He opened the 2018 season with the

Akron RubberDucks The Akron RubberDucks are a Minor League Baseball team based in Akron, Ohio. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They play in Canal Park, located in downtown Akron, which seats 7,630 ...

Detroit Tigers

On July 31, 2018, Castro was traded to the Detroit Tigers in exchange for

Leonys Martín Leonys Martín Tápanes (born March 6, 1988), nicknamed "Ikadi", is a Cuban-American professional baseball center fielder who is currently a free agent. Born in Cuba, he played locally for Villa Clara of the Cuban National Series, and for the ...

and Kyle Dowdy. Following the trade, he split the rest of the season between the Erie SeaWolves and the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A Mud Hens team has played in ...

. He opened the 2019 season back with Toledo. On August 24, 2019, the Tigers selected Castro's contract and promoted him to the major leagues. He made his major league debut that night versus the Minnesota Twins, going 2-for-4. On September 22, Castro hit his first major league home run off Josh Osich of the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

. He ended the season hitting .230 with 1 home run in 30 games. Castro began the 2020 season at the Tigers' satellite training camp in Toledo. He was recalled to the major league club on August 13, 2020. In 129 at-bats during the 2020 season, Castro hit .349 with 6 home runs and 24 RBI. Castro made the 2021 Tigers team out of spring training and played in his first opening-day game at the major league level. After Castro experienced some defensive struggles at shortstop, manager

A. J. Hinch Andrew Jay Hinch (born May 15, 1974) is an American professional baseball coach and former player who is the manager of the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Hinch played catcher for the Oakland Athletics (–), Kansas City Royals ...

began playing him more at second base. On July 16, the Tigers demoted Castro to AAA Toledo. Through the All-Star break, Castro had posted a .214 batting average and 6 home runs, with a minus-10 Defensive Runs Saved rating at second base. Castro was recalled to the major league roster on July 22 to replace the injured Isaac Paredes. He finished the 2021 season batting .220/.273/.351 with 9 home runs, 38 RBIs, and 9 stolen bases in 125 games. On April 6, 2022, the Tigers optioned Castro to AAA Toledo to start the 2022 season. He was recalled to the Tigers on April 17 to replace the injured

Javier Báez Ednel Javier Báez (born December 1, 1992), nicknamed "El Mago" (Spanish for "The Magician"), is a Puerto Rican professional baseball shortstop for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for the Chicago Cu ...

. On November 18, 2022, Castro was non-tendered by the Tigers and became a free agent.

Minnesota Twins

On December 30, 2022, Castro signed a minor league deal with the Minnesota Twins.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Castro, Willi 1997 births Living people Arizona League Indians players Akron RubberDucks players Detroit Tigers players Erie SeaWolves players Mahoning Valley Scrappers players Lake County Captains players Lynchburg Hillcats players Leones del Escogido players Major League Baseball shortstops Major League Baseball players from Puerto Rico Minnesota Twins players People from Río Piedras, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Toledo Mud Hens players