Oct. 01--After a 4-for-5 performance that raised Starlin Castro's batting average in September to .426, the Chicago Cubs' mercurial infielder received extremely high praise Wednesday night from manager Joe Maddon.
"He definitely plays in a non-uptight manner," Maddon said after Castro hit a home run in a 10-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds. "I love it, the way he goes out there and plays tension-free. Right now, he's in the present tense. I watch him right now at the plate, and he's absolutely in tune with each pitch. He's that way on defense. That's what we've been shooting for.
"If he carries this for the rest of his career, I'm telling you it's going to be a good one."
Castro, who lost his starting shortstop position on Aug. 7, is getting more acclimated to second base -- a position where Maddon has rotated frequently in September and has yet to decide who will start for the National League wild-card game on Oct. 7.
But Castro has displayed more ability with his bat, and he made a diving stop on the grass behind second and made an accurate throw on his knees to retire Brayan Pena in the fifth.
"That's why I always I trust the people who say, 'you never stop learning in baseball,' " Castro said. "Now I know it's true. Sometimes you think you know everything, but you don't. That's why some changes make you better. Every year you got to make a change to make you better."
Offensively, Castro moved closer to the plate and closed his stance. That has made him less vulnerable to outside pitches.
At the same time, Castro's success has given him more believe the Cubs can advance in the playoffs after lower expectations.
"Personally, I thought next year (would be a playoff season)," Castro said. "I thought we'd be all right this year, and next year we'll be great. Now we're seeing how fast that we can compete with (any) team. We're good already."
