The Arizona Diamondbacks optioned rookie catcher Adrian Del Castillo to Triple-A Reno after Sunday's contest and recalled right-hander Scott McGough from Reno in a corresponding move on Monday. Del Castillo will head back to the farm for now after regular catcher Gabriel Moreno (groin) returned from the 10-day injured list on Sunday. Moving forward with several weeks left in the 2024 regular season, Jose Herrera will serve as the backup to Moreno. The 24-year-old Del Castillo is the team's No. 14 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, and showed plenty of promise in his first 25 big-league games when Moreno was injured. In 87 plate appearances, he hit .313/.368/.525 with an .893 OPS, four home runs and 19 RBI. Del Castillo has plenty of pop from the left side of the plate and has been barreling the ball up all year. He should get much more run in Arizona in 2025.
Arizona Diamondbacks catcher Adrian Del Castillo will take a seat on Sunday afternoon as the Diamondbacks continue a four-game set against the Los Angeles Dodgers. As a result, switch-hitter Jose Herrera will slot in behind the dish and bat in the nine-hole. Since Gabriel Moreno (thigh) hit the 10-day injured list earlier in August, Del Castillo has begun to gradually earn more stable starting opportunities. Through his first 17 games in the majors, the 24-year-old has posted a strong .321/.400/.528 slash line with three home runs and 14 RBI. Fantasy managers should expect Del Castillo to return to the starting nine on Monday afternoon. Herrera has gone 5-for-22 across his past nine games and is best to leave off of your DFS lineup on Sunday.
Joc Pederson, Adrian Del Castillo Out Against A Southpaw
Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder/designated hitter Joc Pederson and rookie catcher Adrian Del Castillo are both out for Thursday's series finale against the visiting New York Mets at Chase Field. Randal Grichuk is serving as Arizona's DH and is in the two-hole, while Jose Herrera is doing the catching and batting ninth against Mets left-hander David Peterson. It should be no surprise that Pederson is sitting, as he has seen only 36 plate appearances all year against southpaws, going 6-for-27 (.222) against them with only one of his 21 homers. Del Castillo has been a revelation since taking over for the injured Gabriel Moreno behind the plate, batting .354 (17-for-48) with three homers and 14 RBI in his first 14 big-league games. Grichuk might be worth a look in DFS lineups; he's hit .429 with a .929 OPS in seven career at-bats against Peterson.
A night after hitting a grand slam and driving in six runs, catcher Adrian Del Castillo is not in the Arizona Diamondbacks lineup at the Miami Marlins. Del Castillo will be replaced by Jose Herrera, who will bat eighth in the lineup. Del Castillo is hitting .333/.405/.667 with three homers, 14 RBI and six runs scored in his first nine games in the majors, becoming one of the hottest waiver-wire options. If Del Castillo remains available, fantasy managers should waste no time adding him. However, daily fantasy managers must look elsewhere for production behind the plate on Tuesday.
Arizona Diamondbacks catcher Adrian Del Castillo had a spectacular day at the plate in Monday's series-opening win over the hosting Miami Marlins at LoanDepot Park, piling up six RBI in the victory. Before looping a two-run single to right field to extend the D-backs' lead to 7-4 in the seventh inning, Del Castillo emptied the bases with a grand slam off Marlins right-hander Adam Oller to open the scoring for Arizona in the third frame on Monday against Miami. With Gabriel Moreno (groin) sidelined, the left-handed-hitting 24-year-old rookie backstop is pushing for additional playing time against right-handed pitching, slashing .333/.405/.667 with three home runs, two doubles, 14 RBI, and one stolen base in nine games (33 at-bats) since being brought up from the minor leagues on Aug. 6.
Arizona Diamondbacks catcher Adrian Del Castillo had a huge night in his team's 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday. Del Castillo went 3-for-4 with a homer and two RBI in the contest. The 24-year-old's homer was a big one as it was a walk-off shot in the bottom of the ninth inning, traveling 416 feet with an exit velocity of 105.9 MPH. The rookie backstop has now appeared in two games for Arizona, picking up four hits in seven at-bats while notching three RBI. He is worth monitoring in all fantasy leagues moving forward.
The Arizona Diamondbacks called up catching prospect Adrian Del Castillo from Triple-A Reno on Tuesday and placed catcher Gabriel Moreno (groin) on the 10-day injured list in a corresponding move with a left-groin strain. Per MLB Pipeline, Del Castillo is Arizona's No. 28 prospect, and he will now split playing time behind the dish in the desert with Jose Herrera for however long Moreno is sidelined. The 24-year-old left-handed-hitting backstop had been tearing it up in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League at Reno this year, slashing .319/.403/.608 with a 1.010 OPS, 24 home runs and 70 RBI in 100 games for the Aces. He'll be making his major-league debut when he gets into a game. Del Castillo might be worth a look in deep two-catcher and NL-only leagues if he sees enough playing time, but fantasy managers can't expect him to continue his offensive onslaught in the big leagues.
Adrian Del Castillo Goes Deep Three Times On Tuesday
Arizona Diamondbacks catching prospect Adrian Del Castillo went 3-for-4 with three long balls on Tuesday evening to power Triple-A Reno to a victory. De Castillo entered this game swinging a hot bat with a .360/.467/.640 line in his past six games. The Miami product got his first taste of Triple-A ball last season and posted a mediocre .248/.340/.350 with only two home runs. However, this season, the 24-year-old has looked like a completely different player with an eye-catching 20 home runs and stellar .332/.410/.636 line at Triple-A. Del Castillo is currently ranked as the 27th best prospect in the desert on MLB Pipeline, and he should push for a second-half major league debut.
Adrian Del Castillo Having A Strong Season At Triple-A
Arizona Diamondbacks catching prospect Adrian Del Castillo is having a fantastic season at Triple-A this season, slashing .340/.391/.612 with 10 home runs, 37 RBI, and 43 runs scored in 206 at-bats (51 games). The 24-year-old is also leading all minor leaguers in doubles with 22. While Tucker Barnhart surely provides an invaluable veteran presence at the catcher position on the big league club, his .154 batting average, no home runs, and .494 OPS probably won't cut it much longer as long as Del Castillo continues to hit. The left-handed hitter may not have a big impact for fantasy initially as he'd be the backup to primary catcher Gabriel Moreno, but we should see him in the majors at some point this season. If Moreno were to suffer an injury, Del Castillo could quickly become fantasy-relevant.
