Nick Castellanos had five hits, including a double and a home run, scored five runs and drove in two runs to lead Detroit in a series sweep over the Twins earlier this week. The 5-for-12 showing bumped his average to .350, the best in the American League.
Two years ago, Castellanos, one of the Tigers' hotshot prospects, was struggling to adjust to major league pitching in an underwhelming start to his first full season in Detroit. His average hovered in the low .200s and he was striking out about once per game. Does this sound familiar?
Byron Buxton, the Twins' highly touted prospect and former No. 2 overall draft pick, failed to live up to the hype in his first chance to start the season in the big leagues. Buxton totaled just seven hits in 45 at-bats for a dismal .156 batting average. He also struck out 24 times, four coming in his final game before being sent down to Class AAA in late April.
Jason Gonzalez
