MNTwins Trade Trees -- Luis Castillo

Before the 2005 season, the Twins traded a pair of prospects for Luis Castillo. Castillo was a veteran second baseman coming from the Florida Marlins. For a team that was looking to make a deep run in the postseason, Castillo was a welcomed addition. Hitting at or near the top of the order and filling a void at second base. For one and half seasons Castillo batted a line of .299/.357/.363.

At the deadline in 2007, with the Twins failing to meet expectations, Castillo was traded for a pair of prospects. One of those prospects was catcher Drew Butera. Butera made is Twins and Major League Debut in 2010. With the Twins back in postseason contention, Butera would only be asked to back up Perennial All-Star Joe Mauer. For parts of four years, Drew showed he could not consistently hit major league pitching. His career Twins slash line is a measly .182/.230/.263. However, what Butera lacked with the bat, he more than made up for defensively. Behind the plate, Butera quickly gained the trust of his pitching staff and manager Ron Gardenhire. Highlighting his time with the Twins was his successful battery with Carl Pavano during the 2010 season, in which Pavano won a team high 17 games.

In 2013, however, Drew Butera became expendable. The Twins had added veteran Ryan Doumit for his versatility defensively and upgraded bat. As a result, Butera was moved to the Dodgers for a stunning return. With Drew Butera playing in AAA the Twins were able to move him and bring lefty pitcher Miguel Sulbaran in return. At the time, Miguel Sulbaran was a 19-year-old starting pitcher in Class A ball. Sulbaran had a long road to the majors a head of him, however adding a young lefty starter was a promising move.

Sulbaran would not be with the organization for long though. In parts of two seasons, Miguel made four starts, played five games total and pitched only 21 innings for Class A Cedar Rapids. At the time of the 2014 season, the Twins were mired in a string of losing seasons. Looking to add depth and potential, they moved Sulbaran to the Yankees for utility man Eduardo Nunez.

Nunez quickly became a fan favorite at Target Field. Nuni played two plus seasons in Twins uniform. His time was highlighted with an All-Start selection in 2016. Primarily used as a bench and utility man, Nunez slashed a career .280/.311/.422. At the time of his trade to the Giants, the Twins infielder was hitting .296 with 12 homeruns, 15 doubles, and had swiped 27 bases. While playing nearly every position in a Twins uniform, Nunez will no doubt be remembered for consistently losing his helmet while flying around the bases.

In what was arguably the franchises worst season, the Twins traded Eduardo Nunez at the 2016 trade deadline. Presumably years away from competing, the team was looking to add future long term assets. Striking while the iron was hot, the Twins traded All-Star Nunez to the Giants for another young lefty starting pitcher. Unlike Miguel Sulbaran however, Adalberto Mejia had tremendously more upside. Upon joining the organization, Mejia became a top ten talent in an already strong farm system. After dominating AA earlier that season, Mejia would make his Major League debut during the 2016 season. With the start of the 2017 season, Mejia completes the Luis Castillo trade tree. Adalberto Mejia is only 24 years old and under team control until the 2023 season.

Since the start of this trade tree, the Twins have seen both consistent success and multiple last place finishes. However, early success this season has shown that the Twins are in line for another strong run. Hopefully, the moves made since 2005 that culminated in Adalberto Mejia are a sign of future success for the Minnesota Twins.