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Staff Picks: Who Is Your 2013 Astros MVP?
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
There is no way to do list without talking about the Astros sole All-Star, Jason Castro. Castro finally made it through (most of) a season healthy and showed why the Astros took him 10th overall in 2008. In 2013, Jason did not disappoint. He earned his spot as the first Astro on an American League All-Star team and took over as a true offensive threat in the lineup.
Let’s take a look at the numbers.
Jason Castro finished his 2013 campaign with 18 HR, 56 RBI, 35 2B, 50 BB, and 130 Ks. He posted a slash line of .276/.350/.485 which was helped tremendously by his almost .100 jump in Batting Average against Left Handed pitching this year. Castro was consistently the guy who you wanted to see coming up to bat all year as he settled into his role in the middle of the Astros lineup.
Much has been made about Castro’s defense behind the plate, but judging from Baseball-Reference’s WAR count, he is worth 1 win above a replacement player. To put that in perspective, Buster Posey is at 0.7 dWAR for this season, so Castro is definitely not a liability back there.
Overall, Jason Castro had a WAR of 4.6 in 2013, by far the highest of any Astros hitter this season. He makes a very compelling case for the team MVP.