Brad Martens / SF Giants
SCOTTSDALE — If Kervin Castro has the build of a catcher when he digs his feet into the rubber, well, there’s a reason for that.
Castro looks different. The 22-year-old right-hander has some weight to him, with tree-trunk legs and a 6-foot build. He stares down catchers with his glove raised and to his right, his throwing hand inside. Then he pitches, and it’s high-90s heat with a big breaking ball and changeup, and for a pitcher who has made all of 14 appearances at short-season ball and never pitched above that, it, again, looks different.
Castro has been one of the talks of Giants camp so far because of a maturity that belies his age and experience and because his background — and how he found his way onto the 40-man roster — is so unique.
As a young kid in Venezuela, he was a pitcher until he was 8, then switched to catcher when his bat showed promise. He tried doing both until his coaches, at a tryout, asked him to take the mound and see what he had. His first try, which he remembers as Dec. 24, 2014, the then-15-year-old threw 86 mph. He tried again a week later and hit 88.
“That’s when I was told that I had to be a pitcher,” Castro said through translator Erwin Higueros on Saturday.
He embraced it and signed in July 2015 with San Francisco, debuted in the Dominican Summer League in 2016, then required elbow surgery that cost him nearly all of 2017 and ’18. He showed potential in 2019 with short-season Salem-Keizer, when he pitched to a 2.66 ERA in 67 2/3 innings as a starter.
Much of Castro’s 2020 was spent in Orlando, Fla., where he exercised in his apartment and found a trainer who had a gym. He said he could throw bullpen sessions at least once a week, and his work paid off in the instructional league.
Castro’s velocity was up and now is touching 97 mph. His stuff so impressed that a pitcher who had barely actually pitched with the Giants — 28 total appearances between Rookie league and short-season — was protected from the Rule 5 draft. Castro was surprised, too.
“I was the one with the least experience, at least innings,” Castro said at his first big-league camp. “But then, at the same time, it showed the hard work that I put in in the league that I pitched in.”
The hype has only intensified for a pitcher the Giants see as a reliever. Castro has leaned upon fellow Venezuelan Silvino Bracho, who has five years of major league experience and is around on a minor league deal. And on the mound, Castro has pitched two perfect innings with three strikeouts, all while dealing with a pace that has become rare in today’s game.
He pitches, he stays on the mound, he catches the throw back from the catcher, and he’s ready to pitch again. Pitch clocks will not be a problem for him.
He once was an eager catcher, and it shows.
“It’s something that I noticed that works to my advantage,” Castro said over Zoom. “I feel comfortable doing that. And I also think of my infielders and outfielders, that I think it keeps them in the game. They don’t fall asleep out there.”
There is no more sleeping on Castro, who is not competing for a bullpen spot in April in part because of his inexperience and in part because the club has pieced together a set of relievers with resumes and without options.
There is question about the timeline, but there is no question within the Giants about Castro’s endgame.
“That is a future major league pitcher,” Gabe Kapler said Friday after a particularly impressive and quick 1-2-3 inning. “That pace, that tempo — he’s on the mound and ready to deliver the baseball before the hitter is ready. He’s pounding the strike zone, and when he’s not in the strike zone, he’s very close to it. And throwing his secondary weapons for strikes. This is a kid that looked just like that in instructional league. Every bullpen is consistent and composed and it’s professional. Fantastic performance.”
Players don’t move this fast. As much excitement surrounds super-prospect Marco Luciano, he also has topped out at short-season ball and may start at Class-A this year. He’ll probably need to touch High-A, Double-A and Triple-A before a promotion comes.
In terms of his pace, in terms of zooming up onto the Giants’ roster, in terms of positioning himself for conservatively a 2022 debut, Castro is moving this fast.
“That would be a dream come true for me to make it to the big leagues. It is an honor,” Castro said. “It makes me happy to hear the manager thinks that highly of me. The only thing I can do is just continue working so one day I can be in the big leagues.”
