5/27/21

Mack's Top Draft Prospects - #17 - C - Adrian del Castillo

 


Adrian Del Castillo


Mack's spin - 

It's been a disappointing year for Adrian.

He started out a top 5 pick and the number one catcher, but dropped due to questionable defense and a meh offensive production (current batting average as of 5-27: .290)

I now have him coming off my board in this mid-1st round range, as the second catcher behind Henry Davis

 

C     5-11     208     Miami 


 

5-20-21 - mlb 

 

22. White Sox: Adrian Del Castillo, C, Miami

 

Once thought to be one of the top college bats in the class, he struggled early, but perhaps last weekend (4-for-11, 4 RBIs) is a sign of him heating up, though the lack of power and fringy defense makes it hard to place him.

  

5-18-21 - reviewing the brew -

 

(15) Adrian Del Castillo, C, Miami

 

A catching prospect with a big bat but questionable defensive skills? Sign Milwaukee up! Del Castillo has shown the ability to hit for a high average in college, and was in early consideration for a top 5 selection in this draft, even getting some nods for the 1st overall pick.

  

But that has slowed down and he’s dropped down a bit due to his power not showing up so far this season and Baseball Prospect Journal has Del Castillo falling to 15th overall in their Mock Draft 3.0.

 

The Brewers have loved this kind of profile before. Omar Narvaez was a great hitter, but poor defender. They brought him in and turned around his defense, and now his offense is improving. Mario Feliciano, Thomas Dillard, and Zavier Warren were all seen as offense-first catchers with improvement needed defensively. The Brewers believe in their catching development and have invested heavily.

 

They’re likely to invest again if an opportunity to add Del Castillo presents itself. 

 

5-11-21 - Motor City Bengals -

 

Adrian Del Castillo – Del Castillo came into the season as a potential top-five pick, but he doesn’t project to be more than average on defense, and he just hasn’t done enough damage with the bat. He’s still likely to go in the top 20. 

 

5-6-21 - MLB - 5-6 Mock Draft-

 

20. Yankees: Adrian del Castillo, C, Miami

 

Ranked right behind McLain at No. 4 on our preseason Top 100, del Castillo hasn't snapped out of his early-season doldrums and will slide further if he doesn't start living up to his reputation as having one of the best combinations of hitting ability, power and patience in the college class.

  

4-29-21 - Baseball Prospect Report mock 3.0 -

 

15. Milwaukee Brewers: Adrian Del Castillo, C, Miami

 

Del Castillo is an offensive-minded catcher who has the offensive skill set to thrive in the pro ranks. Although some scouts are split on his future defensive position, his offseason work has shown this season. He spent time working with Royals catcher Salvador Perez last summer to refine his defensive skills. I believe Del Castillo will stick at catcher long-term, which only enhances his value. 

 

4-26-21 - mlb.com mock draft -

 

12) Mariners: Adrian Del Castillo, C, Miami

 

Thought to perhaps be the best pure hitter in the Draft class, Del Castillo has scuffled a bit, but there’s enough track record with him to believe he can figure it out at the next level, even if you’re not sure he can stick behind the plate. 

 

4-23-21 - Fish Stripes -

 

2021 MLB Draft Profile: Adrian Del Castillo

 

Bottom Line

 

There might not be another team in the MLB that needs a catcher more than the Miami Marlins. The Fish have a huge need for catcher and one of the top catchers in this draft class is right in their backyard. 

 

4-22-21 - pipeline podcast mock -

 

15) Brewers (Callis): Adrian del Castillo, C, Miami -- His numbers may be down a bit, but he still combines power and patience like few players can in this crop and he has a chance to catch. 

 

4-19-21 - TTF - Mock 2.0 -

 

9. Los Angeles Angels: Adrian Del Castillo, C, Miami

 

Castillo picked up where he left off last season. His defense has always been in question, but that’s okay, he’s more of a Victor Martinez prospect, where his bat is more valuable than his position. The Angels could go in a lot of different directions here, but ultimately they’ll settle for a bat. 

 

4-5-21 - ACC Baseball @ACCBaseball

 

Adrian Del Castillo batted .471 with 3 doubles, 7 RBI and 6 runs scored to lead @CanesBaseball to a 4-0 week!

  

4-2-21 -  Through The Fence -

 

6. Arizona Diamondbacks: Adrian Del Castillo, C, Miami

 

Castillo picked up where he left off last season. His defense has always been in question, but that’s okay, he’s more of a Victor Martinez prospect, where his bat is more valuable than his position.

  

3-30-21 - Prospects Worldwide -

 

15. C/1B Adrian Del Castillo | School: Miami | B / T: L / R | Ht: 5’11 | Wt: 208lbs | Age: 21.8

 

When evaluating Adrian Del Castillo you quickly realize you’re very likely looking at the best Pure Hitter in the 2021 Class. You also come to the conclusion he is pretty unlikely to stick behind the plate long-term. But that won’t stop any team who falls in love with the Bat to make Del Castillo a Top 15 pick. An easy load mechanism at the plate, gets his front foot down early, and sees the pitch out of the pitcher’s hand early, produces an easy Plus Hit tool. A strong approach at the plate with good OBP numbers and limited strikeouts. Mostly Pull-RCF Power which has the looks of Above-average and will occasionally show up the other way but mostly shows strong hitability and doubles power to that side of the field. Not a ton of flexibility behind the plate, athleticism is Below-average, the Arm is Average, maybe slightly better. The blocking/receiving need work behind the plate, and ultimately will likely push him off the position into a more LF/1B Profile.

  

3-26-21 - Carlos Collazo 2021 MLB Draft Prospects Chat -

 

Justin (Tucson, AZ):

 

What future grade are scouts currently putting on Adrian Del Castillo's bat and game power? Would teams still change his position to emphasis the bat, like what happened to Bryce Harper, or is it just league average to a point where they'll keep him behind the plate?

 

Carlos Collazo: I think he has a chance to be a better than league average hitter without putting him into the Bryce Harper echelon of superstar upside. I think 60 hit tool and 55 power could be fair grades for him at this point, though we will have our official tools grades for the top players closer to draft time. That’s something like a .280-.294 hitter with 26-30 homers per season over a multi-year peak—something like that. So I think regardless of the team he could be a bat that plays just fine at another position. Depending on the team he’s drafted at I think it would be worth letting him try and figure it out and work at it. If the Orioles thought he was the best player available when they picked, though, it would make all the sense in the world to me if they moved him off the position and let him get as many reps as possible somewhere else to eventually get them both in the same lineup. So the short answer is, it depends on the team, but I think ideally he should be given a shot to catch at the next level. If he can the profile just becomes so valuable. 

 

3-12-21 - top hitters in draft -

 

#3. Adrian Del Castillo, C

 

A 5-11, 211-pounds, in his third year at the University of Miami, the bat-first Del Castillo has worked hard to improve his defense behind the plate, spending time with Royals veteran Salvador Perez over the offseason. Although his arm strength, receiving and blocking could reportedly use some work, there’s no doubt Del Castillo will flourish on offense as pro.

 

In 2019, his first season with the Hurricanes, the former 36th round pick (2018) hit .331 with 12 home runs and 72 RBI, although of his 61 games that year only 11 came behind the plate. After a stint in the Cape Cod League that summer, Del Castillo’s primary position is now catcher, but as of this writing, he’s still only logged 33 games there in parts of three seasons (with 9 there so far during the ’21 campaign). Regardless, the lefty-hitting Del Castillo is again having a solid year thus far. Entering Wednesday, he’s up to a .293 AVG (.850 OPS) with 4 XBH and 11 RBI in 10 games. 

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