Texas Rangers “Eye on the Enemy”: 3 Astros players to look out for

Catcher Jason Castro could see some action this weekend.

The second player that “Climbing Tal’s Hill” pointed me in the direction of was that of Jason Castro, the Astros backup catcher. He hasn’t been playing a whole lot as of late, but with the Rangers expected to trot out three straight right-handed starters this weekend, Castro’s name could end up being called upon rather frequently.

A 34 year old veteran, Castro actually spent a majority of his early years with the Astros before bouncing around a bit as a journeyman with the likes of Minnesota, Los Angeles (Angels), and San Diego during the later stages of the 2010s. Castro signed a two-year/$7 million this past offseason to return to Houston, and has been solid in his respective role thus far.

Across 18 games and 52 plate appearances, Castro is batting .220. However his OBP is up at .373 due to his high walk rate, and his OPS is north of .800. Above average numbers for a backup catcher.

While Castro is the least of the Rangers’ worries when compared to the rest of the Astros offense-heavy lineup, it’ll be interesting to see if Texas alters their game plan at all when facing Castro as opposed to Houston’s regular starting catcher in Martin Maldonado.