Jesus Castillo gaining confidence after making swing change

Castillo went from switch-hitting to only hitting right-handed going into 2025

Photo Credit: WTM

Every offseason, players attempt to make adjustments, aiming to correct aspects of their game that they are struggling with. Some make adjustments in their timing, such as removing a leg kick, while others resort to more drastic measures.

There might not be a player who made a more drastic change in the Pirates’ system than Jesus Castillo, who went from being a switch-hitter to hitting from just the right side.

Castillo was one of four teenagers in 2023 to record 100 or more walks in a season, joining Jackson Holliday, Termarr Johnson, and Jett Williams. The difference was that the others were all first-round picks.

He wasn’t hitting for a high average (.209), so he still went relatively unnoticed in a system that is dominated by pitching prospects. Castillo isn’t a big power hitter either, having hit just three home runs in nearly 300 minor league games (two of which came this year with Greensboro).