Trades don’t happen over night in MLB, so it is important to keep tabs on players that teams have checked up on in the past.
The baseball world was abuzz back in January when reports came out that the Baltimore Orioles and Seattle Mariners had discussed a trade involving three-time All-Star starter Luis Castillo.
Just because it has been two months since that news broke, this trade is still just as likely. The situations for the two teams have not changed at all.
The Orioles still need to bring in another starting pitcher to replace the loss of Corbin Burnes. Their need has only grown with the fact that Grayson Rodriguez is going to miss time due to an elbow injury.
Meanwhile, the Mariners still have a wealth of pitching talent in their rotation, though George Kirby will miss the start of the season with shoulder inflammation.
As the season progresses and the trade deadline approaches, expect to see Baltimore in the market and Seattle trying to shop Castillo.
Zach Pressnell of FanSided recently put togther a trade proposal that could be enough for the Orioles to land their long time targer. This deal would see Baltimore send a trio of outfielder Heston Kjerstad, outfielder Dylan Beavers and catcher Creed Willems to the Mariners.
Kjerstad is a promising slugger, but has a confusing path to playing time right now on the Major League roster. Instead of keeping him waiting for another year, they could opt to trade him while he still has some of that prospect shine.
He is no longer a rookie, but is still under team control through the end of the 2030 season.
Beavers is a similar story in the outfield, but he has yet to make his debut. He has 20/20 potential as he hit 15 home runs and stole 31 bases in the minors last year.
Willems is a fast-rising prospect as his bat continues to come into form, but neither catcher or first base will have an opening for years in Baltimore.
Seattle needs offense, desperately, so this haul might just be too good for them to pass up on.
The Orioles would be getting one of the most reliable starting pitchers in baseball with three years left on his deal and a vesting option after that, so they won’t have to worry about losing him after just one season.
Since 2019, Castillo has finished with an ERA under 4.00 and has pitched at least 150 innings (outside of the shortened 2020 campaign).
This would be a win-win trade that both teams should heavily consider.
