Rusney Castillo facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rusney Castillo
Castillo with the Long Island Ducks in 2022.
Conspiradores de Querétaro – No. 15
Outfielder
Born: (1987-07-09) July 9, 1987 (age 38) Ciego de Ávila, Cuba
Bats: Right Throws: Right
Professional debut
MLB: September 17, 2014, for the Boston Red Sox
NPB: April 23, 2021, for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
MLB statistics (through 2016 season)
Batting average	.262
Home runs	7
Runs batted in	35
NPB statistics (through 2021 season)
Batting average	.225
Home runs	1
Runs batted in	3
Teams
Boston Red Sox (2014–2016) Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles (2021)
Medals Men's baseball Representing  Cuba Baseball World Cup Silver 2011 Panama Team Pan American Games Bronze 2011 Guadalajara Team

Rusney Castillo Peraza was born on July 9, 1987. He is a professional baseball player from Cuba. Rusney plays as an outfielder for the Conspiradores de Querétaro in the Mexican League.

He has also played for famous teams like the Boston Red Sox in Major League Baseball (MLB). He also played for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). Rusney is 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) tall and weighs 195 pounds (88 kg). He bats and throws with his right hand.

Rusney was born in Ciego de Ávila, a city in central Cuba. When he was 22, he joined Los Tigres. This is the baseball team from his hometown in the Cuban National Series. He also played for the Cuba national baseball team in big international games. These included the 2011 Baseball World Cup and the 2011 Pan American Games. Later, he left Cuba in December 2013 to play in the MLB. In August 2014, Rusney signed a large contract with the Boston Red Sox.

Playing Baseball in Cuba

Rusney Castillo joined the Ciego de Ávila team for the 2008–2009 season. He played with them until 2012–2013. In his first two years, he did not play much. He played only 28 games in his first year and 44 games in his second. He had good hitting averages of .349 and .303.

He mostly played second base, third base, and the corner outfield spots. Later, he became a strong center fielder.

His best season was in 2010–2011. He played much more and had a .320 hitting average. He hit 22 home runs and had 95 runs batted in (RBI) in 107 games. He also scored 75 runs, hit 27 doubles, and five triples. He led the league with 32 stolen bases.

Rusney had another great season in 2011–2012. He batted .342 and had a .574 slugging percentage in 113 games. He stole 27 bases and had a strong .408 on-base percentage. He also drove in 84 runs and scored 101 times. He led the league with 37 doubles. He was also among the top players for batting average and stolen bases.

His last season in Cuba was 2012–2013. His batting average went down to .274. He played 68 games, hitting six homers and 29 RBI. He also stole 15 bases.

Playing for Cuba's National Team

Rusney became well-known playing for the Cuba national baseball team. After other star players left Cuba, he became the main center fielder. This was for the 2011 Baseball World Cup in Panama. Rusney was chosen for the tournament's All-Star team. He led the World Cup in batting average (.512) and slugging (.854). He was also fourth in on-base percentage (.524). He had 21 hits in 41 tries, with four doubles, two triples, and two homers in 10 games.

Rusney also played in the 2011 Pan American Games in Mexico. He hit .273 and had a .333 OBP there. In the same year, he played in a tournament in the Netherlands. In 2012, he played in exhibition games in Nicaragua, Taiwan, Japan, and Cuba. He played against the U.S. College National Team. These games were to get ready for the 2013 World Baseball Classic. Rusney was supposed to be on the team, but he did not make the final roster. He was not allowed to play because he tried to leave Cuba.

Many Cuban baseball stars try to leave the island to play professionally. If they are caught, they are suspended from playing in Cuba. This often leads them to try again to leave the country.

Rusney Castillo successfully left Cuba later. In June 2014, he became a free agent for Major League Baseball. This happened after he moved to the Dominican Republic.

Professional Baseball Career

Boston Red Sox

On August 23, 2014, the Boston Red Sox signed Rusney. He got a seven-year contract worth $72.5 million. He wore jersey number 38, which was his number in Cuba.

Rusney played his first major league game on September 17, 2014. He was the Red Sox's starting center fielder. He got his first MLB hit in the fourth inning. It was a single off Francisco Liriano. Rusney played 10 games for the Red Sox in 2014. He hit .333 with two home runs and six RBI.

Rusney started the 2015 season with the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox. He played 40 games there, hitting .282 with three home runs and 17 RBI. He was called up to Boston in May. He played in 80 MLB games for the Red Sox. He hit .253 with five home runs and 29 RBI.

Rusney spent most of the 2016 season with Triple-A Pawtucket. He played only nine games with Boston. He had two hits in eight tries, with no home runs or RBI.

In total, Rusney played in 99 MLB games for Boston from 2014 to 2016. He hit .262 with 7 home runs and 35 RBI. He was a good fielder, with a .975 fielding percentage in the outfield.

Playing in the Minor Leagues

On June 18, 2016, the Red Sox put Rusney on waivers. He was sent to Pawtucket, where he played for the rest of the season. He played 103 Triple-A games in 2016. He hit .263 with two home runs and 34 RBI.

In 2017, Rusney played 87 games for Triple-A Pawtucket. He hit .314 with 15 home runs and 43 RBI. He did not play any MLB games with Boston that year. Rusney stayed with Triple-A Pawtucket for the 2018 season. He played 117 games, hitting .319 with five home runs and 59 RBI. He was named to the International League All-Star Team. His .319 average was the best in the International League.

Rusney started the 2019 season with Pawtucket. He was the oldest player on the team. He played 120 games, hitting .278 with 17 home runs and 64 RBI. After 2019, Rusney stayed in Boston's minor league system for 2020. This was the last year of his contract. He did not play outside of spring training in 2020 because the minor league season was canceled. On October 28, 2020, Rusney's contract with the Red Sox ended. He became a free agent.

Overall, Rusney played 467 minor league games for the Pawtucket Red Sox from 2015 to 2019. He hit .293 with 42 home runs and 217 RBI. He was a very good fielder, with a .990 fielding percentage in the outfield.

Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles

On January 9, 2021, Rusney signed a $600,000 contract. He joined the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He played his first NPB game on April 23, 2021. Rusney played in 33 games, hitting .225 with one home run and three RBI. He became a free agent after that season.

Long Island Ducks

On January 20, 2022, Rusney signed a minor-league contract with the Washington Nationals. He was released by the Nationals on March 29.

On April 22, 2022, Rusney signed with the Long Island Ducks. This team plays in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He hit .278 with three home runs and 24 RBI in 57 games. He was released by the Ducks on July 7.

Staten Island FerryHawks

On July 11, 2022, Rusney signed with the Staten Island FerryHawks. This is another team in the Atlantic League. He played 43 games for Staten Island. He hit .325 with 3 home runs, 23 RBI, and 4 stolen bases. He became a free agent after the season.

Mariachis de Guadalajara

On March 28, 2023, Rusney signed with the Mariachis de Guadalajara in the Mexican League. In 13 games, he had 12 hits and five RBI. Rusney was released on June 2.

Conspiradores de Querétaro

On January 16, 2024, Rusney signed with the Conspiradores de Querétaro of the Mexican League. In 18 games for Querétaro, he hit .351 with three home runs, 19 RBI, and one stolen base.

Personal Life

Rusney Castillo is married and has one daughter. In early 2018, he was able to visit Cuba for the first time since he left. As of 2018, Rusney lived in Boston. He would drive to home games played in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, which was about an hour away. In April 2019, he put his home in Pinecrest, Florida, up for sale. It was a large house, 10,572 square foot (982.2 m²), listed for $3,953,000.

See also

• List of baseball players who defected from Cuba