I’m also a fan of Pillar. He’s the perfect platoon partner for Mazara. .823 OPS against lefties last year and is as good of a defender as Engel, if not better. He can also pinch run and come in defensively late in games. Sign me up.
Isn’t Collins’ playing time the only thing that changes with an EE signing? If anything, EE keeps the DH spot warm for a year until Vaughn is ready. I don’t really think this move would change that much in terms of the lineup.
I could be wrong, but I don’t think Castellanos was even that bad defensively in Wrigley. GRF is not like Comerica. I think the concerns over Castellanos’ defense are slightly overblown.
Maybe the plan is:
2020: have Mazara play RF with Castellanos at DH. If Mazara does well, they’ll tender him and then trade him, allowing Castellanos to move back to RF for 2021
2021: Castellanos in RF, Abreu at DH, Vaughn at 1B