Max Castillo

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #18 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 40/Medium
  
  Track Record: It was a long, slow trek through the Blue Jays farm system for Castillo. His career started as a 17-year-old in 2016 and he finally made it to Toronto for nine games in 2022. The Venezuelan native was included as part of the package to acquire Whit Merrifield at the trade deadline, and he split the rest of the season with five games in Kansas City and seven games at Triple-A Omaha.
  
  Scouting Report: Castillo isn't flashy. He's more of a yeoman capable of fulfilling various roles on a pitching staff. His 93-mph fastball plays up because of how well he locates it, and induces weak contact with armside run. A key to his development in 2022 was switching from a two-seamer to a four-seamer--which helped the rest of his pitches play up thanks to the different shape. Castillo's best secondary offering is an above-average, 87-88 mph changeup that he commands well. It is firm and lacks a lot of separation from the fastball, but the above-average vertical separation allows it to play solidly. Castillo's best bat-missing pitch is an 83-mph slider with short shape that has paired well with his fastball and changeup. While there's nothing plus in his repertoire, Castillo succeeds with his pitching smarts and by mixing and matching.
  
  The Future: Castillo will head to spring training with his versatility giving him a leg up on a roster spot. Starting pitcher? Long reliever? Swingman? Castillo could fill any or all of these roles for the Royals depending on the team need.
  
  Scouting Grades Fastball: 55. Slider: 50. Changeup: 55. Control: 50

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 40/Medium
  
  Track Record: It was a long, slow trek through the Blue Jays farm system for Castillo. His career started as a 17-year-old in 2016 and he finally made it to Toronto for nine games in 2022. The Venezuelan native was included as part of the package to acquire Whit Merrifield at the trade deadline, and he split the rest of the season with five games in Kansas City and seven games at Triple-A Omaha.
  
  Scouting Report: Castillo isn't flashy. He's more of a yeoman capable of fulfilling various roles on a pitching staff. His 93-mph fastball plays up because of how well he locates it, and induces weak contact with armside run. A key to his development in 2022 was switching from a two-seamer to a four-seamer--which helped the rest of his pitches play up thanks to the different shape. Castillo's best secondary offering is an above-average, 87-88 mph changeup that he commands well. It is firm and lacks a lot of separation from the fastball, but the above-average vertical separation allows it to play solidly. Castillo's best bat-missing pitch is an 83-mph slider with short shape that has paired well with his fastball and changeup. While there's nothing plus in his repertoire, Castillo succeeds with his pitching smarts and by mixing and matching.
  
  The Future: Castillo will head to spring training with his versatility giving him a leg up on a roster spot. Starting pitcher? Long reliever? Swingman? Castillo could fill any or all of these roles for the Royals depending on the team need.
  
  Scouting Grades Fastball: 55. Slider: 50. Changeup: 55. Control: 50
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 40/Medium
  
  Track Record: It was a long, slow trek through the Blue Jays farm system for Castillo. His career started as a 17-year-old in 2016 and he finally made it to Toronto for nine games in 2022. The Venezuelan native was included as part of the package to acquire Whit Merrifield at the trade deadline, and he split the rest of the season with five games in Kansas City and seven games at Triple-A Omaha.
  
  Scouting Report: Castillo isn't flashy. He's more of a yeoman capable of fulfilling various roles on a pitching staff. His 93-mph fastball plays up because of how well he locates it, and induces weak contact with armside run. A key to his development in 2022 was switching from a two-seamer to a four-seamer--which helped the rest of his pitches play up thanks to the different shape. Castillo's best secondary offering is an above-average, 87-88 mph changeup that he commands well. It is firm and lacks a lot of separation from the fastball, but the above-average vertical separation allows it to play solidly. Castillo's best bat-missing pitch is an 83-mph slider with short shape that has paired well with his fastball and changeup. While there's nothing plus in his repertoire, Castillo succeeds with his pitching smarts and by mixing and matching.
  
  The Future: Castillo will head to spring training with his versatility giving him a leg up on a roster spot. Starting pitcher? Long reliever? Swingman? Castillo could fill any or all of these roles for the Royals depending on the team need.
  
  Scouting Grades Fastball: 55. Slider: 50. Changeup: 55. Control: 50
• April, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade: 40/Medium
  
  August Update: Castillo pitched his way onto the 40-man roster with his improved performance over the first few months of the season. Entering the year, Castillo wasn&#39t considered much more than system depth, but in the offseason he switched to a four-seam fastball from his previous sinker and the rest of his arsenal played up off the improved shape. Castillo will mix in a low-80s slider and a high-80s changeup. He&#39s shown the ability to land all of his pitches for strikes but his fastball command is above that of his secondary pitches at present. Castillo has the three-pitch mix and fastball command to project as a back-end starter almost immediately. He has the type of stuff and command that could also make him an asset in the bullpen long term. He&#39s a versatile pitcher with a lunch pail attitude willing to fit a variety of roles. He came to the Royals in the deal that sent Whit Merrifield to Toronto.
  
  Track Record: Signed out of Venezuela in September of 2015, Castillo has performed throughout his minor league career earning a Midwest League All-Star nod in 2018 with Lansing. He had an unremarkable season with New Hampshire in 2021 before returning to the level this spring. There Castillo showed well over six starts and earned a callup to Triple-A Buffalo where he again performed, pitching to a 0.66 ERA over 27.1 innings. He earned a callup to the big league club in late June making four appearances all in relief. Scouting Report: Castillo deploys a three-pitch mix led by a four-seam fastball that sits 92-94 mph touching 95 mph at peak. He shows the ability to miss bats with the pitch due to his ability to land it and some late ride and run. It&#39s a live fastball despite lacking eye-popping analytical metrics. His changeup is his primary secondary and he shows feel for the pitch, it doesn&#39t have tremendous velocity separation from the fastball, but it does have above-average vertical separation allowing it to play despite being somewhat firm at 86-87 mph. His slider sits 82-84 mph with short slider shape, it&#39s his best bat-missing pitch of his trio and it plays well off of his fastball and changeup looks. Castillo uses his average command of three pitches and advanced sequencing to generate outs despite a plus pitch. The Future: Castillo has the ability to provide quality innings only a variety of roles. His best may be as a swing man, fluctuating between long relief and spot starting. There are starter qualities in the profile, but some questions as to if a competitive team could count on him every fifth day.""