Castellanos designated for assignment with Napoli signing official

The Red Sox designated Alex Castellanos for assignment today after making the signing of first baseman Mike Napoli official. Castellanos was acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers in October in exchange for outfielder Jeremy Hazelbaker and cash considerations.

This season, while playing for the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes, he hit .257/.347/.468, but those numbers were inflated by playing in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. He also got a short cup of coffee with the Dodgers, but only hit .167/.167/.389 in eight games.

Over the course of his professional career, Castellanos has played every position in the field with the exception of catcher and pitcher. His best position is in a corner outfield spot, but he has shown the ability to fill in at either second base or third base. Due to that type of versatility, he was expected to play a super utility role wherever he ended up being assigned in 2014.

This was the second move by the Red Sox this month to open up a spot on the 40-man roster to make room for a new signing. On December 2, Ryan Kalish and reliever Andrew Bailey were non-tendered, and shortly afterward the Red Sox signed catcher A.J. Pierzynski and relief pitcher Edward Mujica.

UPDATE: On Monday, December 23rd, Castellanos was claimed off of waivers by the Texas Rangers.

Photo Credit: Alex Castellanos from MiLB.com.

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