Baltimore Orioles Need Miguel Castro To Step Up In 2020

Miguel Castro will look to bounce back for the Baltimore Orioles after another rough season.

Whenever I enter Oriole Park at Camden Yards, my friends and I always run to head over to watch batting practice. Typically, when the Baltimore Orioles are hitting, we notice Miguel Castro in center field. We shout out “Miguel!” and he would hook us up with a baseball. When you head to the ballpark, make sure to stop and say hello to Castro.

While he may be one of the friendliest players in the Orioles organization, there’s no denying that he needs to step in 2020 and finally live up to his full potential.

Last season, Castro was 1-3 with two saves with a 4.66 ERA and 1.42 WHIP. He was worth 0.6 bWAR across his 65 games and 73.1 innings, striking out 71 as the Orioles used him in various roles out of the bullpen.

According to Baseball-Reference and their 2020 projections, they have Castro going 2-4 with a 4.37 ERA, and 1.35 WHIP, logging 63 strikeouts across 70 innings. The projections for Castro look to be similar to last year, but there is still the possibility for him to blossom and really shine next year for the Orioles. That sounds like a broken record, but it’s hard to give up on a 6’7″ pitcher with a 97-98 mph fastball.

Post-All-Star break Castro owned a 3.72 ERA, a .182 average against, and a 9.31 K/9 IP rate. Compare that to his 5.28 ERA, .262 average against, and an 8.32 K/9 IP rate before the break and you can see the improvements in his game as the season went along. Can he carry this late-season success over into 2020?

This will be Brandon Hyde‘s second year at the helm of the Orioles and lots of people will be looking to see what he has in store for next year’s team. As an up and coming manager leading a team with back-to-back 100-loss seasons, whatever he can do to help his squad get back to competing in the American League will be a welcomed sight in Baltimore. If Hyde and Orioles leadership want to make strides in getting closer to this goal, the bullpen must improve, with Castro being a key piece.