BALLER MOVE: Target ~95
CURRENT ADP: 104
ANALYSIS: There has been a steady stream of praise for Luis Castillo since his impressive debut in 2017. Naysayers might point to the small sample size (89.1 innings pitched for Cincinnati), his low BABIP (.247) or his high strand rate (80.1%) and think regression. But don’t dismiss what he did in his first go-around in the big leagues, as his 3.12 ERA and 1.07 WHIP were fully skills-supported. Castillo induced whiffs at a 12.6% rate en route to striking out 9.87 batters per nine innings.
When he wasn’t sending hitters back to the bench looking skyward, he was busy forcing hitters to smash balls into the ground, as his 58.8% ground-ball rate will attest. Had he qualified, that would have placed him fourth among starting pitchers. With a fastball sitting at 98 MPH and a nasty complement of pitches, Castillo is poised to take the next step towards fantasy ace, and this could be the last chance to get him before his price reflects that.
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