What Adrian Del Castillo Needs to Do to Get Back to MLB

Adrian Del Castillo was optioned to Triple-A Reno by the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday afternoon. The catcher had a rough Spring Training dealing with multiple injuries and never seemed to get into a rhythm at the plate.

However, his defense took some big steps forwards and he threw out multiple players on the basepaths. Along with that, he was chosen to travel to Las Vegas for the exhibition games against the Athletics.

Del Castillo batted just .125 with an OPS of .292 over 24 at-bats. He had no walks and struck out 50% of the time with 12 punchouts. It was a grueling Spring at the plate for him, but with time, he should find plenty of success in Reno.

After all, he did win the Pacific Coast League MVP award in 2024 there when he slugged his way to making his MLB debut and getting the Aces back in the playoffs.

Prior to Friday's night game against the Brewers, manager Torey Lovullo spoke to reporters, including Jack Sommers, about the decision to send down Del Castillo.

"It was a challenging, challenging move for us. He's meant a lot to this organization, helped us win a lot of baseball games last year, but there were clearly some things that he needed to work on," Lovullo said.

When asked what Del Castillo needs to work on to get back to the majors, Lovullo shared, "Offensively, he's got to continue to work on controlling the zone, all-field approach, those little things that we always harp on here because we feel like he has a chance to be a really complete hitter."

Lovullo continued about the defensive work, "Defensively, he's making strides with his ability to throw the ball, get it down to second base and continue to lower that time... his pop time."

"We've just got to make tough decisions, and it's clear in what direction we're going to go with the catchers that are ahead of him, and we've just got to continue making him improve. That's our main objective."

Del Castillo excelled early on in his MLB career last year with multiple highlight home runs, such as a grand slam against the Marlins, or his walk-off homer against the Phillies at Chase Field, showcasing his power.

It can be easy then for young players to fall into bad habits, or habits that inhibit the tools that players used to get to the majors in the first place. Lovullo explained below how that situation can happen.

"I'll never forget the walk-off home run against the Phillies, the incredible day in front of his home crowd in Miami. I think you prove to yourself that you can do it and you've got to maintain it and just be yourself. That's always the challenge.

"I don't want them to think they have to be any better than what they were doing. The home run heater is something he's capable of doing. I just want him to know that it's impossible to maintain that. Just go out there and be yourself and that's the main goal for us," Lovullo said.

Del Castillo will continue to work on his defense down in Reno, especially when it comes to his pop times and throwing down to second base, since he has plenty of arm strength but the transitions are what he is working on.

"It's not based on arm strength and pop times, getting the ball down to second base. I think the arm strength is fine. I've seen a lot of catchers play at the big league level with arm strength comparable and maybe even not as strong as his. He does have a strong arm.

"For me, it's about transitioning to the baseball, getting turned and getting ready to throw, getting in a position to throw the ball firmly and accurately. He's done that. He's done a really good job. His evidence is one of the best pop times he's ever had for us at 1.91 when he threw a runner out. Those are things we want to challenge him with, and we know that it's in there."

Del Castillo will be a big part of the Diamondbacks this season. He's an option for DH, as well as the third-string catcher on the D-backs' roster. Should an injury happen to one of the top two, Del Castillo would be called up.

For now, he will ply his craft and continue to hone his skills in Reno in a less pressured environment.