White Sox Place Luis Castillo On Injured List

Just prior to today’s game, the White Sox announced that right-hander Luis Castillo has been placed on the 15-day injured list with a right shoulder impingement. Fellow righty Tyler Davis has been recalled as the corresponding move. The move makes Castillo unavailable for the remainder of the regular season as well as the Wild Card round and ALDS. He could be reinstated for the ALCS and/or World Series if the White Sox make it that far and he gets healthy. That could be a moot point, as Castillo hasn’t been trending in a good direction. After being acquired from the Mariners at the deadline, he posted a 7.52 earned run average in his six starts for the Sox. The club then tried pitching him behind an opener, which didn’t improve things. On September 12, he allowed three earned runs in 2 2/3 innings. The Sox then moved him to the bullpen more concretely. His first single-inning outing was scoreless but he allowed four earned runs in the second, which was on Tuesday. With Castillo losing his spot in the regular season rotation, he certainly wasn’t going to get the ball in a shortened playoff rotation. Even sticking on the roster as a reliever would have been tricky, given his lack of experience in that role and shaky results of late. The shoulder injury perhaps explains some of Castillo’s struggles, as his velocity has been dropping of late. He averaged 95-96 miles per hour on his four-seamer for most of the year but he was at 93.8 mph in September. It was even lower, at 93.2 mph, before he started pitching in shorter bursts as a reliever. Castillo is still under contract for 2027, with a hefty $22.75MM salary. The Sox took on all of that in the trade, though they sent Seranthony Domínguez and his contract the other way in that swap. Dominguez will make $10MM next year, so the Sox added $12.75MM to next year’s payroll with the move. The Sox were hoping Castillo would provide a stabilizing presence to their rotation for this year’s stretch run and also the 2027 campaign. The first part did not pan out. Perhaps Castillo can return to form next year if he puts this shoulder issue behind him. As recently as last year with the Mariners, he was able to make 32 starts with a 3.54 ERA, 21.7% strikeout rate, 6.2% walk rate and 41.3% ground ball rate. Even if he is healthy next year, he shouldn’t be guaranteed a rotation spot. He posted a 5.06 ERA this year before the trade, so it’s not as though his struggles only just popped up recently. He would probably enter camp looking to compete for a spot. The Sox project to have Sean Burke, Davis Martin and Anthony Kay in three spots next year. Erick Fedde is an impending free agent. David Sandlin is currently getting an audition in Castillo’s former spot, though Sandlin has only 34 1/3 innings under his belt with a 6.29 ERA. Castillo and Sandlin would be in the mix for the back-end roles alongside Drew Thorpe, Ky Bush, Jonathan Cannon and others, though the White Sox could also change that picture with offseason moves. For now, it appears the Sox will be trying to make a deep October run without him. Burke, Martin and Kay will likely be getting the starts in the postseason, with Fedde in the mix as well. Photo courtesy of David Butler II, Imagn Images