Adrian Del Castillo was the engine behind the Arizona Diamondbacks’ offense once again on Monday night, powering his team to a comfortable win over the Miami Marlins.
Del Castillo, who was born in Miami and attended the University of Miami, enjoyed quite the homecoming at loanDepot Park by going 2-for-4 at the plate. The rookie catcher drove in six runs in the contest, four of which came via a third-inning grand slam.
The two-RBI single Del Castillo added in the seventh put Arizona up 7-4, setting the stage for a 9-6 series-opening victory.
Del Castillo is now batting .333 with three home runs, 14 RBI and a 1.072 OPS in the nine games he’s played since joining the Diamondbacks’ active roster on Aug. 6. Before getting called up to make his MLB debut earlier this month, Del Castillo was ranked as the No. 14 prospect in Arizona’s farm system.
According to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs, Del Castillo’s 14 RBI are tied for the second-most through nine career games since the stat became official in 1920.
The record still belongs to Mitchell Page, who had 15 RBI across his first nine MLB appearances back in 1977. Dale Alexander is tied with Del Castillo in second place, having initially set the record in 1929.
Del Castillo has been filling in for reigning Gold Glove winner Gabriel Moreno, who is on the injured list with a left adductor strain. Moreno is expected to miss at least the rest of August, giving Del Castillo an even longer runway to leave an impression and make more history at the MLB level.
The Diamondbacks are set to face the Marlins again on Tuesday, with first pitch scheduled for 6:40 p.m. ET.
