The Boston Red Sox had to make some tough decisions to open up November. They had too many players on their 40-man roster, leading to a few trades. But they still had more cuts to make.
The tough choices didn’t stop there, however. Allan Castro had a meteoric rise through the system over the last few years. It hasn’t been nearly as well documented, thanks to massive jumps by prospects like Roman Anthony, Payton Tolle, Kristian Campbell, Franklin Arias and Justin Gonzales (man, the Red Sox get a lot of huge leaps, don’t they?)
On November 2, Castro either needed to be added to the 40-man roster or he would become a minor league free agent. According to Andrew Parker of SoxProspects, he’s now a minor league free agent.
There’s always a world where Castro comes back to the Red Sox. It’s not absurd for a prospect to return to an organization they are familiar with. Yes, the Red Sox have a logjam in the outfield (where Castro plays), but that should be solved this offseason. They were supposed to figure it out last offseason, but now it’s reached a boiling point.
Red Sox outfield prospect Allan Castro not granted 40-man roster spot despite rumors, hits MiLB free agency
Castro would enter 2027 not that far down the pecking order. With the season in question anyway, it might be smart for him to want to be in an organization he knows and is comfortable with for the minor leagues.
However, other teams could be calling. The switch-hitter slashed .252/.325/.397 with 18 doubles, one triple and 15 home runs. He drove in 77 runs, scored 64 and stole 20 bases. The RBI and steals were new career highs, while his home runs tied his best metric.
His numbers were strong, but Castro was lifted a bit by an incredible final week that included three doubles, six home runs, and 17 RBI. The stats were still good, but that certainly skewed things a bit. It’s also important to note that Triple-A pitching just wasn’t very good. I’m only bringing that up because inevitably someone will.
Maybe that played into the Red Sox decision, though. It could be that they felt his season was underwhelming (outside of a hot June and ridiculous September) against weak Triple-A pitching.
Or it could be that Castro is a jack-of-all-trades, but master of none. He can do a bit of everything, but his power is just okay. There was a time when the raw power felt like it could develop more (and he’s still young enough at 23 that it could), but he might live in the 20-homer range. He won’t steal a ton of bags. His defense is that of a decent corner outfielder with an okay arm. Meanwhile, Castro doesn’t strike out too much (18.2% K rate) and can draw walks (10.1% BB rate). He also isn’t going to hit for a high average, though.
I would love for the Red Sox to bring Castro back. He could be a great fourth outfielder down the line. A switch-hitter who can do a bit of everything sounds great, especially because there is still room to grow for someone who was just 23 in his first taste of Triple-A last season.
The risk is strange due to the offseason, though. Will any team want to commit to giving Castro a 40-man roster spot knowing there’s a risk they might not have a major league season? If not, I refer back to my point that he might just want to be where he’s comfortable.
There are plenty of teams that could decide to take a swing on Castro, though. It won’t be a high-risk play to sign a minor leaguer, and he’s shown a lot of growth and some flashes of intriguing potential over the last few seasons.
The Red Sox likely wouldn’t be losing a potential star, but they could be losing a very good depth outfielder who might have a big season or two.
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