New York Yankees Starlin Castro: Bronx Rebound in 2016?

There were a frenzy of signings and trades Tuesday evening at the MLB Winter Meetings with teams across the league bringing in huge upgrades. One of the more high-profile moves was the New York Yankees trading for Starlin Castro.

The deal as itself seems like a major coup for the Yankees as all they had to give up was back-end rotation arm Adam Warren and weak hitting Brendan Ryan. Castro is only 26 and comes with a ton of upside as the three-time all-star has certainly got the skill to excel in New York. But, he sure does come with his baggage as well as his lackadaisical play and struggles last season point to a player that can surely battle staying mentally engaged.

From a fantasy perspective, Castro clearly is the most notable piece in the deal, but I will admit that there is a chance that Warren could become a waiver wire add next season. Last season Castro ended up posting a .265/11 HR/69 RBI/5 SB/.296 OPS, a far cry from his early all-star seasons.

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Castro came out of the gates hot in 2015, batting .325 in April, but then dipped severely in May-July where he never batted higher than .245. During the crux of his struggles he came under fire for his lack of performance and with Addison Russell breathing down his next and eventually unseating him, he just looked like a guy that was pressing.

Now Castro has certainly done himself no favors with his mental lapses in the field and overall appearance of not caring, but the potential is evident. Once August came and he was permanently moved to 2B, Castro was able to ratchet up his performance and reestablish his value. He batted .296 in August and then turned that into a .369/1.055 OPS line over the course of Sept. and Oct.

His also saw his power stroke return during the end of the season as well as he homered five times and knocked in 21 RBI over that same span. This is what Castro is capable of if his head is on straight and what hopefully the Yankees think they are getting.

Castro should carry both 2B and SS eligibility next season improving his fantasy value and even more. The move from Wrigley to Yankee Stadium should offer some boost and with him batting in the middle of the Yankees order, he should allow him to maintain his counting stats.

Speed wise, Castro really has seen a big drop since 2012 when he stole 20+ bases, but he was also thrown out a league-high 13 times that season and it appears as though he has really been given the red light ever since. Next season he should probably flirt with 10 total SB, so it is just another small stat uptick.

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Castro looked like a prime rebound candidate heading into 2016 regardless of where he wound up, so the move to New York reinforces that. There is always the chance that Castro goes into another near season long slump, but with his role set heading into this season and a fresh start with the Yankees, he will surely be a middle infield fantasy target.

2016 Early Projections: .285/15 HR/70 RBI/7 SB/.750 OPS