Almost certainly unrelated to the very strange Stephen Drew rumor that just popped up, there is still a little bit to flesh out from this weekend’s shooting in the Dominican Republic, which appears to have involved people known by/close to/related to Starlin Castro.
Castro’s agent, Paul Kinzer, was on MLBN Radio today to provide a little more information, and you can listen to two snippets here. In addition to confirming that, per the police in the DR, Castro has been cleared of any involvement in the shooting, Kinzer got into what comes next for Castro. The most important bit is that Kinzer, Theo Epstein, and Jed Hoyer have all spoken to Castro about these issues, and Castro is in the process of trying to find a place to live in Florida or in Arizona, according to Kinzer.
As I said this weekend, you hate the thought of having to tell someone that they’ve got to leave their hometown and home country, but it feels like there are some serious safety concerns at play for Castro because of his extreme notoriety in his small town. Kinzer told MLBN that he believes Castro knows he has to make some changes, and to move somewhere that he can stay focused on baseball.
Wherever this goes next, I hope that Castro, with the help of his agent and the Cubs organization, is able to put himself in a position where he is safe, and where he is in the best position to avoid trouble in the future. If that means a permanent move to the States, then so be it.