The starting shortstop for the Chicago Cubs was questioned by police in the Dominican Republic over the weekend while the Toronto Blue Jays and San Diego Padres are looking to add a middle infielder of their own.
Starlin Castro was let go on Saturday after being questioned about a shooting in his home country, according to Dominican police representative Jacobo Mateo Moquete. Earlier on Saturday, Castro's agent told the Chicago Tribune that the 24-year-old "wasn't involved" and voluntarily went to the police to let them know. Fortunately for Castro, the police have a video in their possession that proves he was not involved.
Six people were injured early Saturday morning after a nightclub shooting and it is believed people close to Castro - his brother and bodyguards - were involved in the incident, according to Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes. What's troubling is that Castro was linked to a previous shooting in the Dominican earlier this month, but was cleared after questioning.
Castro owns a career stat line of .284/.325/.410 with 51 home runs and 294 RBIs in five MLB seasons.
As for middle infielders, the Toronto Blue Jays and San Diego Padres are targeting Japanese veteran Takashi Toritani formerly of the Hanshin Tigers, according to Brendan Kennedy of the Toronto Star. The 33-year-old shortstop is considering a move to the MLB after a long career in the Japan Central League and his current situation is interesting.
The Blue Jays offered him a contract and want him to play second base, while the Padres have a deal in place for him to play shortstop. The terms of the contracts are unknown, but it's expected they're both one-to-two year deals. Toritani has proven to be a durable player in Japan and has slashed .285/.372/.412 with 120 home runs and 677 RBIs in 11 seasons.
The Padres have Clint Barmes listed as their starting shortstop and could use an upgrade while the Blue Jays need a definitive solution at second base since they have had 14 different players at the position since trading Aaron Hill in 2011. Toritani hired Scott Boras as his agent, so we'll see how the situation develops.
