Baseball America names D-backs’ Adrian Del Castillo, Yilber Diaz to minor league All-Star teams

Arizona Diamondbacks catcher Adrian Del Castillo and pitcher Yilber Diaz have been named to Baseball America’s minor league first and second All-Star teams, respectively.

With Triple-A Reno, Del Castillo has hit .312 with 26 home runs and 75 RBIs with a 1.002 OPS. Baseball America notes that Del Castillo, who leads the Triple-A level in OPS and is fifth in home runs, has been one of the best players in the Pacific Coast League in 2024.

Del Castillo scuffled at Miami in his draft year of 2021 and for two seasons in the D-backs’ system. That tide began to turn this season, when everything clicked for the 24-year-old left-handed hitter in the Pacific Coast League. Del Castillo led the minor leagues with a .603 slugging percentage and 1.002 OPS and also finished fourth with 65 extra-base hits despite spending more than a month in the big leagues, where he filled in for an injured Gabriel Moreno.

Del Castillo made his MLB debut on Aug. 7 versus the Cleveland Guardians, where he got his first career major league hit.

He would get his first career home run two days later in dramatic fashion, hitting a three-run, walk-off homer against the Philadelphia Phillies.

In 25 games played with the D-backs, he hit .313 with four home runs and 19 RBIs with a .893 OPS.

He platooned with Jose Herrera at the starting catcher position before being sent down on Sept. 16 after Gabriel Moreno was reinstated from the injured list.

With Triple A-Reno, Diaz has a 3-4 record with a 3.22 ERA, 63 strikeouts and a 1.29 WHIP.

Diaz made his MLB debut on July 8.

In six games pitched with the D-backs, Diaz has a 1-1 record with a 3.86 ERA with 18 strikeouts and a 1.32 WHIP.

After a loss to the Kansas City Royals on July 28, Diaz was sent down back to Triple-A but was brought back to the majors on Sept. 12, where he has pitched out of the bullpen.

Baseball America’s minor league All-Stars at every level include a current D-backs prospect and a former one

Diamondbacks prospect Demetrio Crisantes, who split the year with the Single-A Visalia Rawhide and Arizona Complex League team, made Baseball America’s low-A All-Star team at second base.

The 19-year-old slashed .333/.429/.478 and put together 57 straight games of safely reaching base for Visalia.

Former Arizona prospect Deyvison De Los Santos made the Double-A team for the publication at first base for his time under the D-backs’ umbrella. He spent much of the year at two lower levels with Arizona’s organization before being dealt to the Miami Marlins in the A.J. Puk trade.

De Los Santos posted a .372 average and 1.12 OPS with Double-A Amarillo before he was promoted to Triple-A.

He was then in the trade to the Miami Marlins organization and cooled off to bat .240 with a .743 OPS in 50 games with Triple-A Jacksonville.