Ofilio Castro
From BR Bullpen
Ofilio A. Castro
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 0", Weight 160 lb.
Ofilio Castro played his 8th minor league season in 2008, becoming one of the few Nicaraguans to reach AAA.
Castro signed with the Montréal Expos in late 2000. He debuted as a pro with the 2001 DSL Expos, hitting .181/.330/.213. He followed with a .263/.411/.340 campaign in 2002. In 2003, Castro came stateside and struggled mightily ,hitting only .152/.226/.176. He played for Nicaragua in the 2003 Baseball World Cup, backing up Edgard Lopez at shortstop. He was 0 for 2 and handled one chance (an assist) in 2 2/3 innings spread out over 3 games.
Castro split 2004 between the Vermont Expos (.261/.364/.365) and Savannah Sand Gnats (.189/.184/.243). With Vermont, his 45 putouts led New York-Penn League third basemen. In 2005, the Nicaraguan infielder hit .261/.337/.362 for Savannah, followed by .253/.342/.346 for the same club in 2006.
In 2007, Castro split time between the Potomac Cannons (.304/.359/.369 in 55 games) and the Harrisburg Senators (.254/.336/.305 in 57 games). He made the mid-season Carolina League All-Star game. Castro played for three clubs in 2008, appearing with Potomac (.236/.250/.291 in 13 games), Harrisburg (.277/.328/.379 in 108) and the AAA Columbus Clippers (.256/.327/.326 in 14). He fielded .965 at third base for Harrisburg, leading Eastern League players at the hot corner. He played for Nicaragua in the 2008 Americas Baseball Cup and made the tournament All-Star team at second base after hitting .480/.536/.640 and handling 36 chances without an error; he had 7 runs and 7 RBI in 8 games. He was 3rd in average, 9th in slugging, 5th in OBP, tied for 2nd in hits (12), tied for 5th in RBI and tied for 6th in runs.
