Frank Castillo

Frank Anthony Castillo

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 190 lb.
• High School Eastwood High School (El Paso)
• Debut June 27, 1991
• Final Game May 26, 2005
• Born April 1, 1969 in El Paso, TX USA
• Died July 28, 2013 in Bartlett Lake, AZ USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Frank Castillo pitched parts of thirteen seasons in the majors, most notably with the Chicago Cubs.

With a repertoire including a sinking fastball, a curveball, a change-up, and a slider, Castillo was selected by the Cubs in the sixth round of the 1987 amateur draft. He immediately found pro success, going 11-1 with a 2.15 ERA in 13 starts between the Wytheville Cubs and Geneva Cubs that summer. He reached the majors in June 1991, giving up 2 earned runs over 8 innings in his debut against the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 27th. He remained a member of the Cubs rotation for the rest of the year, winning his first 3 decisions and ending his rookie campaign with a 6-7 record and 4.35 ERA and 4 complete games.

Castillo was a mainstay in the Chicago rotation for the next several seasons. He put together his best year in 1995, going 11-10 with a 3.21 ERA in 29 starts. Facing the St. Louis Cardinals on September 25th, he took a no-hitter into the ninth inning, finally giving up a triple to Bernard Gilkey with two outs. The next year, he lost 16 games for the Cubs to tie Pat Rapp for the National League lead. During the 1997 season, Castillo was traded to the Colorado Rockies for Matt Pool. After the season, he became a free agent and signed with the Detroit Tigers.

He signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks before the 1999 season but was released during spring training and ended up spending the year with the Triple A Nashville Sounds in the Pittsburgh Pirates chain. Back in the majors in 2000, he went 10-5 in 25 appearances for the Toronto Blue Jays. He then moved to the Boston Red Sox for two seasons. Castillo split 2003 at the Triple A level between the Oakland A's and Atlanta Braves organizations. He appeared in two games for Boston in 2004 and got his last taste of big league ball in 2005 with the Florida Marlins. After a season away from baseball, Castillo pitched for the York Revolution in their inaugural season in the independent Atlantic League in 2007, going 8-4 with a 3.75 ERA in 19 games. He also made 7 appearances for the club the next summer.

Following his playing days, Castillo was pitching coach for the AZL Cubs in 2011 and 2012. He drowned in Bartlett Lake in Arizona in 2013. A poor swimmer, he jumped from a pontoon boat into the lake for a dip and did not resurface. Divers searched for his body for several hours with no success. He was 44 years old.

Notable Achievements

• 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 1 (1992)

Related Sites

• Frank Castillo at the SABR Bio Project