Valbuena's skill set is precisely the type that doesn't result in inflated paychecks. So I'm not too worried about his escalating salary. I'm not against a Castillo signing. But his Cuban league numbers aren't all that impressive and the scouting reports are contradictory. All I'm saying is that I want to know more about what type of player he is before I get upset that the Cubs are or aren't willing to offer a certain amount. I am moderately interested in seeing how Renteria would try to cycle Castillo, Alcantara, Soler, Bryant, Baez, and Valbuena around in a lineup. But unfortunately there's not an easy platoon option that I see. Bare minimum, Valbuena can make 22-25 over the next 5 years and I think that's being really conservative IMO (final arb year and 4 FA years). Plus the actual number thrown out for Castillo is 55. So a conservative figure is $30M extra over that time span. Plus even if Valbuena keeps providing surplus value, Alcontara could struggle, Soler could continue to get hurt, or Stanton could become available and drain us of surplus value guys. I don't think you'd see any strict platoons either. You could easily move Alcontara around as required and just give guys normal rest, protect against injuries or play non-handedness matchups.