Rusney Castillo’s major league debut with the Boston Red Sox is in the books.
Castillo went 1-for-4 on Wednesday as the Red Sox suffered a 9-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park. The Cuban outfielder’s lone hit was a fourth-inning single to second base, though Boston can feel good that a core member of the organization moving forward finally has arrived.
The next week and a half is more about Castillo, who signed a seven-year, $72.5 million contract last month, easing into big league action and familiarizing himself with his new teammates and coaches than the Red Sox drawing any long-term conclusions based on results. The 27-year-old looked comfortable, though, both in how he handled the pregame hoopla and how he responded between the lines.
“He’s aggressive, he’s going to hit the ball where it’s pitched, (he) wasn’t really challenged defensively, (he) makes a decent running catch out in left-center field,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said after the game. “But for his debut, first action, he didn’t look overmatched (and) didn’t look overwhelmed in the situation.”
Castillo saw four pitches in his first at-bat to lead off the second inning. He took the first three pitches — fastball, changeup, fastball — and jumped ahead in the count 2-1 before swinging at Francisco Liriano’s fourth offering. Castillo’s swing produced a dribbler in front of home plate up the third base line. Catcher Russell Martin raced out from behind the dish to scoop the swinging bunt and fire to first base for the out.
Castillo’s second at-bat yielded better results, as he shot a 1-0 fastball to second base that Neil Walker couldn’t corral on a diving attempt. Walker knocked down the baseball, but he failed to recover. The speedy Castillo easily reached first base with his first big league hit.
“You’d always like to hit the ball hard and maybe have it be a line drive,” Castillo said after the game, through a translator. “But that being said, a hit’s a hit and I’m happy I got one.”
Justin Wilson took over for Liriano in the seventh and faced Castillo to begin the inning. Castillo took a hearty cut and whiffed on a first-pitch fastball. He then laid off the second pitch, laced the third pitch foul to the right side and lifted the fourth pitch to center fielder Starling Marte for a routine out.
Jeanmar Gomez was Castillo’s final opponent in the ninth inning. Castillo wasted no time against the right-hander, chopping a first-pitch fastball to shortstop Clint Barmes for a 6-3 putout.
Castillo wasn’t tested much defensively. He did, however, show off his range while making a nice backhanded catch in left-center field in the fifth inning. Castillo and Yoenis Cespedes converged on Liriano’s fly ball toward the gap before Castillo ultimately took charge and made a waist-high grab.
“I’m pretty satisfied with that being my first game,” Castillo said of his performance. “Obviously, I’d like a better outcome in terms of winning the game. But I was pretty satisfied with my overall approach and the way I stepped in today and had some results.”
There will come a point when results are the bottom line for Castillo and the Red Sox. That point won’t come this season, but Castillo’s comfort level Wednesday suggests good things could lie ahead.
