Juan Gabriel Castro (born June 20, 1972), is a

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

former professional baseball

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers,

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

, Baltimore Orioles, and

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

, during his 17-year big league career. Castro was known mainly for his defensive abilities. He was primarily a reserve player. Castro batted and threw right-handed. Following his retirement as a player, Castro joined the Dodgers organization as a coach. During the 2020 and 2021 seasons, Castro was the infield coach for the Phillies.

Baseball career

Los Angeles Dodgers

Castro was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1991 and began his trek through the

minor leagues Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

with the Great Falls Voyagers in 1991. He followed that up with time spent with the

Bakersfield Dodgers Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...

San Antonio Missions The San Antonio Missions are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. They are located in San Antonio, Texas, and are named for the Spanish missions around which the city was founded. ...

and Albuquerque Dukes. He was selected to the Texas League All-Star Team while with San Antonio in 1994. Castro made his major league debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 2, against the Montreal Expos as a defensive replacement at third base. He got his first at bat on September 11, and recorded his first career hit in his first career start on October 1 against the San Diego Padres. Playing for the Dodgers was especially meaningful for Castro, as he idolized fellow Mexican and former

Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

pitching ace Fernando Valenzuela as a child. Castro played for the Dodgers through the season. His primary position was shortstop, but he also backed up at second base and third base.

Cincinnati Reds

After seeing very little playing time during the 1999 season, Castro was traded by the Dodgers to the

for Kenny Lutz on April 1, 2000, just before the start of the season. He played with the Reds from 2000 to 2004, mostly as a

utility player In sports, a utility player is one who can play several positions competently. Sports in which the term is often used include association football, American football, baseball, rugby union, rugby league, softball, ice hockey, and water polo. The ...

. In 2003, he batted .253/.290/.388 with career highs of nine home runs and 33 RBI in 113 games.

Minnesota Twins

In , Castro was signed by the

as a backup to rookie shortstop Jason Bartlett. Bartlett struggled and Castro saw increased playing time. He batted .257/.279/.386, and his nine sacrifices were seventh in the league.

Cincinnati Reds (second stint)

On June 15, , Castro was traded back to the

for minor league outfielder Brandon Roberts. On September 25, 2006, the Reds signed him to a two-year, $2 million extension. On April 21, , Castro was designated for assignment by the Reds.

Baltimore Orioles

On May 2, , he became a free agent, and signed with the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

. After spending some time playing for the Rockies' Triple-A affiliate, the

Colorado Springs Sky Sox The Colorado Springs Sky Sox were a Minor League Baseball team in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The team played in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and was the Triple-A affiliate of the major league Milwaukee Brewers (2015–2018), Colorado Rockie ...

, he was traded to the Baltimore Orioles on July 19 for infielder Mike McCoy, and was immediately added to the major league roster. Castro started more games at shortstop than any other player in 2008 for the Orioles.

Los Angeles Dodgers (second stint)

He became a free agent at the end of the season and on January 4, , he signed a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training with his original team, the Los Angeles Dodgers. He spent the season as a backup infielder and then filed for free agency again.

Philadelphia Phillies

Castro agreed to a one-year deal with the

on November 24. Castro temporarily replaced Jimmy Rollins at shortstop after Rollins suffered a right calf injury. Playing third base, Castro fielded the ground ball and threw to first, completing the 27th and final out of Roy Halladay's perfect game on May 29, 2010.

Los Angeles Dodgers (third stint)

Castro was released by the Phillies on July 17, 2010, and returned to the Dodgers on a minor-league contract on July 27, 2010. The Dodgers called him up to the Majors on August 11, 2010. He appeared in one game and was designated for assignment on August 21. The Dodgers had intended to recall him when rosters expanded in September, but he chose to remain home to attend to an ailing family member. He became a free agent after the season but re-signed with the Dodgers on a minor league contract that included an invitation to spring training. He was assigned to the AAA Albuquerque Isotopes. On May 13, 2011, he had his contract purchased by the Dodgers. After appearing in seven games, during which he was 4-for-14 (.286), he was again designated for assignment on June 6.

Retirement

He retired from baseball on July 10, 2011. Over 17 years in the major leagues, he batted .229/.268/.327.

Coaching

Castro agreed to a new position as a special assistant to the general manager with the Dodgers, with involvement in player development and talent evaluation. He was also a coach with the Mexico national baseball team in the

2013 World Baseball Classic The 2013 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an international professional baseball competition, held from March 2 to March 19, 2013. This was the third iteration of the WBC, following the two previous tournaments, held in 2006 and 2009. Unlike ...

. Castro was the Dodgers minor league infield coordinator in 2015. In 2016, he was added to the Dodgers major league staff as a quality assurance coach. After the 2017 season, he left the Dodgers to become the director of operations for the Tijuana Toros in the Mexican League. In 2018, Castro returned to the

Mexican Pacific League The Mexican Pacific League (), known as Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacífico for sponsorship reasons or simply LMP for its acronym in Spanish, is a professional baseball winter league based in Northern Mexico. The ten-team regular season schedule run ...

to manage the

Águilas de Mexicali The Águilas de Mexicali ( en, Mexicali Eagles) are a professional baseball based in Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico. They compete in the Mexican Pacific League (LMP), a Mexican winter league. The team plays at Estadio Nido de los Águilas als ...

, his second stint as manager of the club. In 2019, Castro was announced as manager for Team Mexico at the

2019 WBSC Premier12 The 2019 WBSC Premier12 was an international baseball championship featuring the 12 highest-ranked national teams in the world, held by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). It was the second WBSC Premier12 event. The championship ...

tournament. He joined the

as an infield coach prior to the 2020 season. Castro was dismissed from his position on October 3, 2021, before the Phillies played their final game of the 2021 season. In January 2022, Castro was named manager of the Mexican League team Diablos Rojos del México. In his first season, he led the team to a 50–24 record and a first place regular season finish in the LMB South Division. However, the team lost to eventual champions Leones de Yucatán in the Division Championship. Castro returned in 2023, but was fired on May 7, 2023, after a 6–9 start to the season.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Castro, Juan 1972 births 2006 World Baseball Classic players Albuquerque Dukes players Albuquerque Isotopes players Baltimore Orioles players Bakersfield Dodgers players Baseball players from Sinaloa Cañeros de Los Mochis players Cincinnati Reds players Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Great Falls Dodgers players Living people Los Angeles Dodgers coaches Los Angeles Dodgers players Louisville Bats players Major League Baseball players from Mexico Major League Baseball shortstops Mexican expatriate baseball players in the United States Minnesota Twins players Philadelphia Phillies players San Antonio Missions players Sportspeople from Los Mochis