Castellanos worked with hitting coach Kevin Long over the offseason to simplify his swing following a disappointing first season in Philadelphia, Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Castellanos homered just 13 times while slashing .263/.305/.389 in his Phillies debut, a line which made him a below-replacement player according to WAR when factoring in his poor defense. Sliders posed a particular problem, and opposing pitchers knew it, throwing him sliders 32.0 percent of the time compared to 21.8 percent against the rest of the league. Long noticed while reviewing the outfielder's film that Castellanos had added multiple extraneous movements of his bat, head and hands, which may have given him less time to see the pitch and decide to lay off as it dove out of the zone. It's too early to say if the changes will have any impact, but there's at least now a narrative to support those betting on a bounce-back.
Phillies' Nick Castellanos: Out following Monday's clincher
Rotowire
Castellanos is not in Tuesday's lineup against the Astros, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Like many of the Phillies' regulars, Castellanos gets the day off after securing a postseason berth Monday. Dalton Guthrie is starting in right field and hitting eighth.
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Phillies' Nick Castellanos: On bench for nightcap
Rotowire
Castellanos isn't starting the second game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Nationals.
Castellanos started Saturday's matinee and went 1-for-4 with a run, an RBI and a strikeout. Matt Vierling will take over in right field and bat eighth for the second game of the twin bill.
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Phillies' Nick Castellanos: Catches breather Thursday
Rotowire
Castellanos is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Cubs.
Castellanos went 3-for-4 in Wednesday's game, but he returned from nearly a four-week absence the day before, so he will be held out Thursday for maintenance purposes. Expect him to get an at-bat -- or perhaps more -- at some point in Thursday's contest.
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Phillies' Nick Castellanos: Comes off IL on Tuesday
Rotowire
Castellanos (oblique) was reinstated from the 10-day injured list prior to Tuesday's game against the Cubs.
He missed almost the whole month with a right oblique strain. Castellanos is hitting .297 with five home runs in 37 games in the second half and did not go on a rehab assignment.
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Phillies' Nick Castellanos: No rehab assignment needed
Rotowire
Castellanos (oblique) will not need a rehab assignment and is expected to return sometime during next week's series against the Cubs, which runs Tuesday through Thursday, Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.
Castellanos has missed the last three weeks due to a strained right oblique, but his recovery is evidently going well. He hit off a pitching machine Friday and apparently convinced the Phillies that he won't need any game action before returning to the team. The Phillies currently sit in playoff position but have yet to lock up a wild-card berth, so it makes sense that the team would want to have Castellanos back as soon as possible.
