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Well, the Starlin Castro era is over for the Chicago Cubs. And upon hearing the news, my feelings were as varied as the two songs I'm sharing in this article. Part of me was always frustrated by Castro. I never felt he was a gamer. Call it ADD. Call it laziness. Call it "too much, too soon." Whatever "it" was, Castro never passed the eye test for me. I've called for him to be traded on my podcast, The Son Ranto Show, numerous times. Especially last winter, after Starlin had a bounce back 2014 only to watch his trade value diminish once again in the first half of 2015. But then there was second half Starlin.
This is the Starlin I'll miss. The gum bucket helmet, shirt-untucked walk-off winner, who splashed onto the Cubs almost six years ago. He was seemingly a hitting savant who could smack any pitch in or out of the zone for a base hit. I was awed by his natural talent as a 20-year-old rookie and felt that if only he could "get it together" and focus, he could go down as one of the greatest hitters in the game. He went down, all right. And up. And down again. My perception of Starlin came in and out like the tides, and in many ways, he was the player I loved to hate. Or at least complain about.
People on Twitter, upon Starlin's trade asked me what song I was going to write about all this. Reactions on the site were as varied as my own internal feelings about the man. Starlin Castro was such an enigma, that upon his departure, I felt he needed two songs. One, a parody of his walk up music "Ando en La Versace," which I posted on Fanshots and Facebook Wednesday as a celebration of Starlin's fun and foibles. The other, a parody of David Bowie's "Starman", which retains a more wistful quality of what might have been, premiering here.
My suggestion, listen to "Starman" first if you miss him, and "Starlin Castro's Gone" if you don't. But please listen to 'em both!
With that, I hope you enjoy the tunes and I know Starlin is going to love New York City with its huge Dominican population. It's a great fit for him. They're going to love him. I wish you well, Starlin.