Reds right fielder Nick Castellanos. (David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports)
Cincinnati Reds outfielder Nick Castellanos hit a home run and a grand slam with a chipped bat against the Cardinals, then made a young fan’s day by giving it to him.
Nick Castellanos’ bat was on fire on Wednesday against the Cardinals. Now it’s not his bad anymore.
Using a bat with a visible chunk missing from the top, the Reds outfielder smacked a two-run homer in the first inning and followed that up with a grand slam in the second.
Cardinals manager Mike Shildt actually had the umpires check the bat on suspicion that it was illegal. It wasn’t, as the officials ruled the structural integrity of the bad wasn’t altered.
Shildt and other managers won’t have to worry about checking Castellanos’ bat in the future. He gave it away to a young fan.
Nick Castellanos grand slam bat drew suspicions but he won the day
Castellanos has apparently used that chipped bat for at least a week. He’s hit four home runs in that stretch, including the two on Wednesday.
Despite it apparently being a bit of a good luck charm, Castellanos did the coolest thing by handing it off to a fan. If opposing managers were going to start complaining about it, taking it out of play makes sense. It would have been easy to just toss it out. Now the bat is a piece of incredible memorabilia for that lucky Reds fan.
It doesn’t seem to matter what kind of bat Castellanos uses this season. He’s batting .319/.376/.579 with 26 home runs this season.
It’s critical for the Reds to have Castellanos at the top of his game in September. They’re fighting for a wildcard spot in the National League with the Padres, Cardinals, Phillies and Mets.