REDS SIGN FREE AGENT NICK CASTELLANOS
Agrees To 4-Year Contract, Will Be Introduced Tomorrow
CINCINNATI – Cincinnati Reds President of Baseball Operations Dick Williams tonight announced that free agent OF Nick Castellanos (Ca-ste-yah-nos) has agreed to terms on a 4-year, $64-million contract through the 2023 season.
The contract includes salaries of $16 million in 2020, $14 million in 2021, $16 million in 2022, $16 million in 2023 and a $2 million buyout on a $20 million mutual option for 2024. It also includes opt out clauses following the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
Castellanos will be introduced at a press conference at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow in the Williams Family Champions Gallery in the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum.
“This is an off-season where we have prioritized adding to the offensive side of the club,” Williams said. “Nick was one of the most attractive options on the market. He has been a consistently elite producer offensively and that complements our existing team well.”
Castellanos, 27, at last summer’s July 31 deadline was traded from the Detroit Tigers to the Chicago Cubs for RHP Alex Lange and RHP Paul Richan. In 151 appearances for those 2 teams, he combined to hit .289 with 58 doubles, 27 HR, 88 extra-base hits and 100 runs scored, all career highs. Castellanos became only the third right-handed batter in Major League history to produce in a season at least 55 doubles and 25 HR, joining Hall of Famers Hank Greenberg (1934) and Joe Medwick (1937). He made 136 starts in right field and 4 starts in left field, all for the Cubs.
With 58 doubles in 2019, Castellanos led the Major Leagues and became only the 10th player to produce that many doubles in a season. His 229 doubles beginning with the 2014 season tie Mookie Betts of the Boston Red Sox for the most of any player in the Major Leagues over the last 6 years, and his 104 doubles in 2018 and 2019 led all Major League players.
Castellanos’ 88 extra-base hits last season were second-most in the majors behind Boston’s Rafael Devers (90). He is 1 of only 5 players in the Major Leagues to produce at least 70 extra-base hits in each of the last 3 seasons, joining Nolan Arenado, Mookie Betts, Francisco Lindor and J.D. Martinez.
The Tigers’ first draft pick in 2010, 44th overall, Castellanos played in at least 148 games in 4 of the last 5 seasons. He led the American League with 10 triples in 2013 and over the course of his career has ranked among league leaders in games played (9th in 2017, 6th in 2018), hitting (9th in 2018), hits (3rd in 2018), doubles (4th in 2018, 1st in the majors in 2019), total bases (10th in 2017, 8th in 2018) and RBI (9th in 2017).
To make room on the 40-man roster, the Reds designated for assignment OF Jose Siri.