Trade him? Please.
On Friday, Starlin Castro showed why the Cubs made him a franchise player and put him on billboards opposite Derek Jeter.
Castro hit two homers and drove in six runs (tying a career high he set in his MLB debut May 7, 2010) as his redemption came full circle when the Wrigley faithful demanded a curtain call, Castro's first.
"I've been here six years and that's never happened," he said. "I enjoyed it so much."
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That had to feel good for Castro, who hit rock bottom when he was benched in early August and Joe Maddon announced Addison Russell as the Cubs' new shortstop.
Right after the Cubs had forfeited their lead to the Cardinals in the top of the fifth, Castro delivered for the Cubs in the bottom of the inning, sending a moonshot into the left-centerfield bleachers.
He took his time enjoying the swing and the result:
That gave the Cubs a 5-3 lead and sent 40,846 fans to their feet, but Castro's second blast almost brought the house down.
With two runners on and two outs in the sixth, Castro sent one over the smaller video board in left field to extend the Cubs' lead to 8-3.
Castro finished the day 3-for-3 with a walk.
MLB
When he was benched Aug. 7, Castro was hitting .236 with a .575 OPS.
In 33 games since that benching, Castro is hitting .352/.366/.582 (.948 OPS) with 14 runs, six doubles, five homers and 14 RBI.
Castro has always been very well-liked in the Cubs clubhouse as a guy who is very coachable and truly cares about his performance and the product on the field.
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It was a nice moment for him to come full circle with Friday's glory.
"I've been saying it all along: Since we [benched him], this guy hasn't complained, cried, nothing," Maddon said. "He's just come out and he's gotten ready to play. When he doesn't play, he stays ready to come in the game. When his name has been called, he's been ready.
"I've been nothing but impressed with him this whole time. His defense at second base has gotten really firm. It's a credit to him as a person. The fact that here's a guy who has been on the All-Star team a couple times and now all of a sudden, he's relegated to a different role and he eventually does this in a very important game.
"Give him a lot of credit, not just a little."