McKnight: Castro Named Reserve For All-Star Game
By Connor McKnight--
(WSCR) There have been younger All-Stars--but not many. Starlin Castro, 21, is the youngest Cub to ever be named to the mid-summer classic. His .309 batting average is good for ninth in the NL coming in to Sunday's game against the White Sox. Castro is second in NL in both hits (108) and multi0hit games (32). His seven triples is the third highest total in the NL.
Castro's potential in the field is apparent to just about anyone who watches but, at times, he's been susceptible to mental mistakes. Refining his defense has been a priority from day one. "I thought he got better last year, defensively," Quade said. "He was making progress. He stumbled a bit early on [this year]. I didn't think he was playing quite as well as he should. Now, to me, he's put together four, five, six weeks of the defense that you really want to see."
While he rarely speaks to the media, Castro pulled out all the stops Sunday afternoon. He sat in the dugout with third base coach Ivan DeJesus at his side, just in case. Answering in short but confident clips, Castro spoke in English and needed DeJesus' help as interpreter only once. Learning the language is a big part of growing up, coming into his own and stepping out on the stage here in Chicago. As Castro gains command of the language, as well as shortstop, he figures to be a huge part of a Cubs organization so desperately in need of positives.
