Third Baseman, Minnesota
Twins
Age: 24
Bats – Right,
Throws – Right
Height: 5’11” Weight: 175
Prior to 1979:
An Illinois
native, Castino played basketball and football as well as baseball at New Trier
High School. He moved on to Rollins College in Florida where he was offered a
dual scholarship in basketball and baseball, a broken hand finishing his
college basketball career before it started. Focusing on baseball Castino
became a third baseman as a junior. He performed well and was selected by the
Twins in the third round of the 1976 amateur draft. First assigned in ‘76 to
Wisconsin Rapids of the Class A Midwest League, Castino batted .286 with 6 home
runs and 41 RBIs over the course of 65 games. Starting 1977 with Orlando of the
Class AA Southern League, Castino hit only .189 in 36 games and was demoted to
Visalia of the Class A California League where he raised his average to .327
and hit 16 home runs with 54 RBIs in 72 games. Returning to Orlando in 1978 he
produced a .275 average with 11 home runs and 63 RBIs and performed well in the
field, leading all Southern League third basemen with 122 put outs and a .967
fielding percentage. Initially slated to play in Class AAA in 1979 Castino made
it to the Twins due to back problems that hindered third baseman Mike Cubbage.
1979 Season Summary
Appeared in 148
games
3B – 143, SS –
5, PH – 11, PR – 4
[Bracketed
numbers indicate AL rank in Top 20]
Batting
Plate
Appearances – 445
At Bats – 393
Runs – 49
Hits – 112
Doubles – 13
Triples – 8 [10,
tied with Alan Bannister, Mickey Rivers & Lou Whitaker]
Home Runs – 5
RBI – 52
Bases on Balls
– 27
Int. BB – 0
Strikeouts – 72
Stolen Bases – 5
Caught Stealing
– 2
Average - .285
OBP - .331
Slugging Pct. -
.397
Total Bases – 156
GDP – 9
Hit by Pitches
– 1
Sac Hits – 22
[2]
Sac Flies – 2
Midseason
snapshot: 3B – 4, HR – 2, RBI - 31, AVG - .274, OBP - .339
---
Most hits, game
– 4 (in 4 AB) vs. Kansas City 9/5
Longest hitting
streak – 8 games
Most HR, game –
1 on five occasions
HR at home – 4
HR on road – 1
Multi-HR games
– 0
Most RBIs, game
– 3 at Toronto 7/15, vs. NY Yankees 9/20
Pinch-hitting/running
– 3 of 8 (.375) with 4 R & 2 RBI
Fielding
Chances – 376
Put Outs – 85
Assists – 277
Errors – 14
DP - 31
Pct. - .963
Awards & Honors:
AL Rookie of
the Year: BBWAA (co-winner)
AL ROY Voting:
John Castino,
Min..: 7 of 28 votes, 25% share
Alfredo Griffin,
Tor.: 7 votes, 25% share
Mark Clear, Cal.:
5 votes, 18% share
Ross
Baumgarten, ChiWS.: 3 votes, 11% share
Ron Davis, NYY:
3 votes, 11% share
Pat Putnam,
Tex.: 3 votes, 11% share
---
Twins went 82-80
to finish fourth in the AL Western Division, 6 games behind the
division-winning California Angels. The club got off to a quick 22-8 start and
contended until the last week of the season.
Aftermath of ‘79:
Following a
slow start in 1980, Castino went on to bat .302 with 23 home runs and 64 RBIs
while continuing to perform impressively in the field. The Twins were a
last-place club in the strike-interrupted 1981 season but Castino continued to
play well, hitting .268 with a league-leading 9 triples to go along with 6 home
runs and 36 RBIs. An injury in September aggravated a congenital back problem
that required surgery. He returned to the rebuilding Twins in 1982, primarily
playing at second base to clear the way for the up-and-coming Gary Gaetti at
third. Castino’s batting average dropped to .241 along with 6 home runs and 37
RBIs. He got off to a strong start in 1983 and ended up hitting .277 with 11
home runs and 57 RBIs. Castino reinjured his back in 1984 and chose to retire
at age 29. For his career, spent entirely with the Twins, he batted .278 with 646
hits that included 86 doubles, 34 triples, and 41 home runs. He also
accumulated 249 RBIs.
--
Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were recipients of
the Rookie of the Year Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America
(1947 to present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from
its inception through 1948 and from 1949 on to one recipient from each major
league.
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