Cubs prospect Castro homers in first big-league AB

The Cubs on Friday promoted prized shortstop prospect Starlin Castro from Class AA Tennessee, and the 20-year-old phenom wasted no time making his mark — he homered in his first major league at-bat and lined a bases-loaded triple, giving him six RBIs in his big-league debut.

Castro, a right-handed batter, launched an opposite-field, 3-run blast to right in the second inning against Reds starter Homer Bailey. The home run came on a 2-2 pitch. In the fifth, against reliever Micah Owings, he laced a liner into the left-center field gap, clearing the bases.

Castro hit .429 with a homer and five RBIs in 35 Cactus League at-bats this spring, and he hit .376 with a homer and 20 RBIs in 26 games with Tennessee this season.

With Castro taking over as the Cubs’ starting shortstop, Ryan Theriot will shift to second base and Mike Fontenot will become a reserve. Theriot has played exclusively at shortstop since the 2008 season but has played 79 games at second in his major league career.

The Cubs on Friday promoted prized shortstop prospect Starlin Castro from Class AA Tennessee, and the 20-year-old phenom wasted no time making his mark — he homered in his first major league at-bat and lined a bases-loaded triple, giving him six RBIs in his big-league debut.

Castro, a right-handed batter, launched an opposite-field, 3-run blast to right in the second inning against Reds starter Homer Bailey. The home run came on a 2-2 pitch. In the fifth, against reliever Micah Owings, he laced a liner into the left-center field gap, clearing the bases.

Castro hit .429 with a homer and five RBIs in 35 Cactus League at-bats this spring, and he hit .376 with a homer and 20 RBIs in 26 games with Tennessee this season.

With Castro taking over as the Cubs’ starting shortstop, Ryan Theriot will shift to second base and Mike Fontenot will become a reserve. Theriot has played exclusively at shortstop since the 2008 season but has played 79 games at second in his major league career.

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