MLB Trade Deadline: Is Willi Castro an Ideal Fit for Chicago Cubs?

[RandallPnkFloyd]

Image courtesy of © Dennis Lee-Imagn Images

The more we progress into July, the closer we get to the Chicago Cubs making a move to fortify what should be a playoff roster. While starting pitching will (and should) grab much of the focus, there's also the matter of shoring up the positional side of things. Whether it's someone to hold down third base while Matt Shaw sorts what's left of his offensive development or a bat for the bench, it's likely that we'll see at least one new face step into the lineup before August rolls around. 

Willi Castro is a player who could, technically, serve either of the above roles. It's a bit more of a stretch to say he's the type of player that could supplant Shaw for the remainder of 2025, however. Such a role might be better left to someone like Eugenio Suárez. Instead, Castro is exactly the type of player whom the Cubs should be coveting to shore up their bench. 

It's no secret that the Cubs haven't gotten much out of their depth in 2025 (with the exception of the catcher spot, where both Carson Kelly and Reese McGuire have thrived). Jon Berti appeared only 10 times in June, and many of those were as a pinch-hitter or pinch-runner. Vidal Bruján made the same number of appearances but was even less impactful, given that many of those were late-inning pinch-run appearances that didn't even get him time in the field. One (or both) might not be long for the roster. Such conditions put a lot of pressure on the team's regulars to maintain production without much of a blow in between longer stretches. 

Enter Castro. The potential for a starting bat at third base notwithstanding, Castro has the ability to raise the floor of the Cubs' reserves considerably. He offers versatility similar to Berti's or Bruján's; he's logged time at second base, shortstop, third base, and each of the corner outfield positions in 2025. But he also comes with vastly more offensive upside. He's evolved into an everyday player for the Minnesota Twins, almost never at the same position on consecutive days. Of course, an acquisition like Castro comes with certain caveats—the first being whether his team would even be willing to move him. 

The Twins are not currently in playoff position. As of this writing, they're 12.5 games back in the American League Central. At the same time, they're only four back in the Wild Card race. While their volume of injuries in their starting rotation is problematic, it's possible they're less inclined to sell than we might instinctively assume. They've had some torrid stretches, mixed in with the underwhelming ones, and moving an essential component of their roster (like Castro) would signal the start of a sale. He is a free agent after the season, though, so any prolonged struggle in July could eliminate this as a potential hurdle. 

That brings us to the second caveat: the quality of Castro's defense. 

Yes, Castro can play virtually every position on a baseball field. But of the five positions at which he's appeared this year, he's only been average at two of them, and only by certain metrics. Fielding Bible has him at -2 Runs Saved at second, -1 at third, and -2 at shortstop, the latter of which has come in a sample of only 25 1/3 innings. Statcast goes -1, -3, and -2 in Outs Above Average at the three positions, respectively. Where he has found success is on either side of the outfield grass. While Fielding Bible has him at -1 in either of left and right, Statcast has him at 0 OAA in left and 1 OAA in right. So you're going to get a little more stability at those positions than you might on the infield.

It's important to note, however, that Castro does have a historical precedent for being quite a bit better with the glove than he has been in 2025. With the exception of shortstop (where he was considerably worse across a larger sample), he was above-average at every position in each of the two previous years. The good news is that Castro wouldn't be poised to play either of the middle infield positions with any level of consistency. You're talking about an occasional fill-in for Nico Hoerner or Dansby Swanson. He's proven he can hang at third and is steady in the corners. Such a reality would allow him to step into a role similar to that of Berti or Bruján, with far more to offer at the plate. 

That's the important distinction between Castro and his versatile contemporaries currently floating around the Cubs' bench. Castro's at a 123 wRC+ this year, contributing a .267 average, a .353 on-base percentage, and a .167 isolated power to the cause in Minnesota. That's an exponential upgrade to what the Cubs have out of their reserve players at present, to say nothing of the fact that the versatility Castro brings to the field is something he also brings to the lineup. He has at least 18 plate appearances in every spot in the order that isn't the leadoff or the cleanup. He switch-hits. He'd be an entire Swiss Army knife for Craig Counsell to have at his disposal on either side of the ball. 

There's some obvious context to consider as it relates to Castro, particularly in terms of the Twins' desire to compete and what the Cubs might pursue elsewhere in order to address their lineup. The two teams may not come together, if the Twins pursue a playoff berth or the Cubs are working on another front. But it's hard to argue against the prospect of Castro in this lineup.

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[Bertz]

I really want Castro.  I think he's my favorite offensive player to add by an order of magnitude.

He's not an especially good hitter,  I think it's probably good to calibrate expectations properly that he's a league average hitter that has just gotten some good fortune in the BABIP department the first half of this year.  But man that versatility is attractive. 

If you read the Athletic article from earlier in the week about adding a bat, it's clear that the thinking is as much about reducing risk as it is improving the team.  Fans are focused on upgrading from Shaw and Turner, but just as important is future proofing such that an errant fastball to Nico Hoerner doesn't torpedo our middle infield.  Castro is perfect because he does both by virtue of playing literally anywhere.