White Sox offseason acquisition and veteran catcher Welington Castillo is set for a rehab assignment in Triple-A after completing an 80-game suspension earlier in the season. Castillo tested positive for PEDs in May, his first infraction under the Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.
JUST ANNOUNCED: @whitesox catcher Welington Castillo to begin a rehab assignment today with the #CLTKnights. He's batting 2nd and our DH today. #WhiteSox pic.twitter.com/zi9BcQw6OH
— Charlotte Knights (@KnightsBaseball) August 17, 2018
Contrary to many other players’ feelings after testing positive for banned substances, Castillo was contrite and sincere in his apology to his teammates and Sox fans.
“I was recently notified by Major League Baseball that I had tested positive for EPO, a substance that is prohibited under MLB’s Joint Drug Agreement. The positive test resulted from an extremely poor decision that I, and I alone, made. I take full responsibility for my conduct. I have let many people down, including my family, my teammates, the White Sox organization and its fans, and from my heart, I apologize. Following my suspension, I look forward to rejoining my teammates and doing whatever I can to help the White Sox win.”
Although Castillo was suspended without pay relieving the White Sox from a secondary penalty, losing the veteran was a blow to the roster. At the time of Castillo’s suspension, he was batting .267 with six home runs and creating a morale boost to an otherwise downtrodden start to the 2018 season.
Castillo is eligible to return on Aug. 23, but the team is resolute in pacing his return. This is not surprising considering Omar Narvaez and Kevin Smith‘s outstanding offensive performance lately, but no matter what the catching pair does this season, Castillo will be in the rotation soon enough.
Narvaez has batted .357 since June 1 and raised his season average to .281 from .169. Smith has played similarly well batting .283 on the season and .379 against lefties.
Castillo is the clear leader of the catching contingent and the White Sox won’t delay too long before reinstating him to the active roster.
