Luis Felipe Castillo (born March 10, 1995) is a Dominican professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

in the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

organization. He has previously played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

and

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

and in

Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning simply ''Professional Baseball''; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league ...

(NPB) for the

Chiba Lotte Marines The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based in Chiba, Chiba, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, in the Kantō region, and owned by Lotte Holdings, Lotte Holdings Co., Ltd. The Marines were a founding member of the Pacific Le ...

and

Orix Buffaloes The are a Nippon Professional Baseball team formed as a result of the 2004 Nippon Professional Baseball realignment by the merger of the Orix BlueWave of Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes of Osaka, Osaka Prefecture ...

. He signed with the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...

as an international free agent in 2012.

Career

Arizona Diamondbacks

On February 16, 2012, Castillo signed with the

as an international free agent. He made his professional debut with the Dominican Summer League Diamondbacks, recording an 0–9 record and 4.48 ERA in 14 starts. He returned to the team the following season and went 4–4 with a 3.58 ERA in 14 starts. For the 2014 season, Castillo played for the rookie-level

AZL Diamondbacks The Arizona Complex League Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team competing as a Rookie-level affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Salt River Fields a ...

, posting a 3–3 record and 4.40 ERA in 15 appearances. The next season, Castillo recorded a 1.83 ERA in 11 games with the team. In 2016, he played for the rookie-level

Missoula Osprey The Missoula PaddleHeads are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Missoula, Montana, and play their home games at Ogren Pa ...

, posting an 0–3 record and 4.04 ERA in 19 games. For the 2017 season, Castillo played for the Low-A

Hillsboro Hops The Hillsboro Hops are a Minor League Baseball team in the Pacific Northwest, northwest United States, located in Hillsboro, Oregon, a city in the Portland metropolitan area. The Hops are members of the Northwest League and are the High-A affilia ...

, registering a 2.91 ERA with 35 strikeouts in 34.0 innings of work. He split the 2018 season between the Single-A

Kane County Cougars The Kane County Cougars are a professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois, and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play their home games a ...

, Hillsboro, and Missoula, accumulating a 2.41 ERA in 24 appearances between the three teams. In 2019, Castillo played tor the High-A

Visalia Rawhide The Visalia Rawhide are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Visalia, California, and have played their home games at Valley Strong Ballpark since their ...

, recording a 9–0 record and 3.81 ERA in 43 appearances. Castillo did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. He was assigned to the Double-A

Amarillo Sod Poodles The Amarillo Sod Poodles, nicknamed the Soddies, are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Amarillo, Texas, and play their home games at Hodgetown in downtow ...

to begin the 2021 season before receiving a promotion to the Triple-A

Reno Aces The Reno Aces are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Reno, Nevada, and play their home games at Greater Nevada Field, w ...

in June. Castillo finished the year with a cumulative 4.72 ERA in 29 appearances between the two affiliates. He elected minor league free agency following the season on November 7, 2021.

Detroit Tigers

On February 1, 2022, Castillo signed a minor league contract with the

organization. He was assigned to the Triple-A

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 baseball team nicknamed the ...

to begin the season. On August 6, the Tigers selected Castillo to their

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

and promoted him to the major leagues for the first time. He made his major league debut that night. Castillo made 3 scoreless appearances for Detroit, striking out 4 over innings of work. On November 10, Castillo was removed from the

and sent outright to the Triple-A Toledo; he elected free agency the same day.

Chiba Lotte Marines

On December 16, 2022, Castillo signed with the

(NPB). In 12 appearances for the Marines in 2023, he compiled a 3-3 record and 3.12 ERA with 34 strikeouts across 49 innings of work. Castillo became a free agent after 2023 season.

Orix Buffaloes

On January 16, 2024, Castillo signed with the

of NPB. In 15 appearances for the Buffaloes, he had a 3–5 record and 2.96 ERA with 74 strikeouts across innings pitched. Castillo became a free agent after the season.

Seattle Mariners

On January 28, 2025, Castillo signed a minor league contract with the

that included an invitation to spring training. On April 4, the Mariners selected Castillo's contract, adding him to their active roster. He was nicknamed "The Pebble," a reference to teammate Luis Castillo's nickname of "La Piedra," Spanish for "The Rock." In two starts for Seattle, Castillo struggled to a 7.71 ERA with five strikeouts over seven innings. On April 10, the Mariners optioned him down to the Triple-A

Tacoma Rainiers The Tacoma Rainiers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. They are located in Tacoma, Washington, and play their home games at Cheney Stadium, ...

. Castillo was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

by the Mariners on May 6.

Baltimore Orioles

On May 7, 2025, the Mariners traded Castillo to

in exchange for cash considerations. After two rehabilitation starts for the rookie-level

Florida Complex League Orioles The Florida Complex League Orioles are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Before 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Orioles. The team plays its home g ...

, Castillo was designated for assignment on June 29. He cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple-A

Norfolk Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's loc ...

on July 7.

International career

Castillo played for the

Dominican Republic national baseball team The Dominican Republic national baseball team ( Spanish: ''Selección de béisbol de República Dominicana'') is the national baseball team of the Dominican Republic. The team has won the Baseball World Cup in 1948 and World Baseball Classic in 2 ...

in the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

, contested in 2021. He was 1–1 with a 6.75 ERA in five relief appearances.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Castillo, Luis Felipe 1995 births Living people Baseball players at the 2020 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic medalists in baseball Olympic bronze medalists for the Dominican Republic Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Major League Baseball pitchers Detroit Tigers players Seattle Mariners players Erie SeaWolves players Toledo Mud Hens players Dominican Summer League Diamondbacks players Arizona League Diamondbacks players Missoula Osprey players Hillsboro Hops players Kane County Cougars players Águilas Cibaeñas players Visalia Rawhide players Amarillo Sod Poodles players Reno Aces players Tacoma Rainiers players Olympic baseball players for the Dominican Republic Sportspeople from Sánchez Ramírez Province Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic 21st-century Dominican Republic sportsmen Florida Complex League Orioles players