Castano, Neidert named to pitch in Grapefruit opener
Marlins manager Don Mattingly has announced his Opening Day starter ... for their slate of spring training games.
Mattingly said Monday that left-handed pitcher Daniel Castano will be the first Marlins pitcher to take the mound when they begin their 24-game Grapefruit League schedule on Sunday against the Houston Astros at the FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches.
Nick Neidert, who along with Castano is competing with Braxton Garrett and Trevor Rogers for the final spot in the Marlins’ starting rotation to start the season, will be the first pitcher out of the bullpen on Sunday in what will most likely be a seven-inning game.
Castano and Neidert had differing paths in their
2020 seasons that have them in their current positions.
Castano, the Marlins’ No. 26 prospect according to Baseball America, took advantage of an opportunity that most likely would not have been available to him under normal circumstances. Prior to 2020, he was perceived as a depth pitcher. He hadn’t pitched above Double A.
But the Marlins needed starting pitching at various points last season following their COVID-19 outbreak early in the season, especially during a slew of doubleheaders. Castano filled that role.
Castano made seven appearances (six starts) in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, with his final four starts coming on days the Marlins played doubleheaders. He posted a 3.03 ERA over 29 2/3 innings and held opponents to a .263 batting average and a 1.38 WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitched). Sixto Sanchez, the Marlins’ top prospect, was the only rookie pitcher on the team to throw more innings in 2020 than Castano.
Neidert, the team’s 15thranked prospect by Baseball America, began the 2020 season as part of the Marlins’ extended bullpen, a benefit of the league starting with 30-man rosters. He had a stellar debut appearance, throwing 2 1⁄3 scoreless innings in relief during the Marlins’ 7-1 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on June 25.
But then he was one of the 18 Marlins players to test positive for COVID-19 following that season-opening series. He returned to the roster in mid-September and made three more multiinning relief appearances. He had a pair of scoreless outings against the Boston Red Sox on Sept. 17 and Atlanta Braves on Sept. 23. Between those two appearances, however, he gave up five runs on seven hits against the Washington Nationals on Sept. 20.
As for who will start on Opening Day of the regular season when the Marlins play the Tampa Bay Rays on April 1? Mattingly still isn’t revealing that just yet. Sandy Alcantara, Pablo Lopez and Elieser Hernandez
are penciled in as three of the Marlins’ starters, with Sanchez the leading candidate to get the fourth spot.
“I’d say there’s a leader in the clubhouse,” Mattingly said.