New Arrival: Santiago Casilla, p, Oakland Athletics

New Arrival: Santiago Casilla, p, Oakland Athletics

Santiago Casilla spent 15-seasons in the majors, most of them very good.

When he was coming up through the Oakland system he was known as Jario Garcia, and was a legit relief prospect. He made the majors in 2004, but it would take a couple of seasons before he would stick with the big league club. During that time it came out that his real name was Santiago Casilla and he was three years older than he originally claimed.

In 2007 he would finally spend the majority of the season with Oakland, and over the next 11 seasons would average 55 IP with a 3.18 ERA/122 ERA+/1.277 WHIP. He has three seasons of at least 25 saves, including his 2015 campaign with San Fransisco when he racked up 38 saves. During his time in the Bay Area, he would get three World Series rings: 2010, 2012, and 2014.

Casilla is a great example of how volatile a pen arm can be. In 2009 he looked like he was done, with an ERA near 6 over 48 innings. The Athletics let him walk as a free agent. The Giants signed him, and in 2010 he goes on to pitch 55 innings with a 1.95 ERA/201 ERA+. Baseball is weird.