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Frank Castillo was born and raised in El Paso, Texas. As a child, Frank and his brother Joe played baseball for hours on end in their backyard and would pretend that the ivy-covered stone wall behind their house was the outfield wall in Wrigley Field. It marked the realization of a boyhood dream when the Chicago Cubs drafted Frank out of El Paso's Eastwood High School in 1987. At the age of 22, he made his Major League debut on June 27, 1991 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Four years later, Fhe pitched one of the most storied games of his career when he took a no-hitter into the ninth inning, only to have it broken up by a hit on a 2-2 count with two outs and no men on base. After pitching seven seasons with the Cubs, he went on to pitch for the Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Toronto Blue Jays, and Boston Red Sox, ending his career with the 2004 World Champion Boston Red Sox. He pitched one game with the Florida Marlins in 2005. He returned to baseball in 2007 with the York Revolution of the independent Atlantic League and again played for them in 2008. Castillo had a career record of 82-104, with a 4.56 ERA. Players and fans alike were drawn to his intense workmanlike approach and his fearlessness on the mound. Always a "team first" player, he never hesitated to "send a message" whenever an opposing pitcher had drilled one of his teammates. In total, he pitched 297 games over 13 year Major League seasons. He was inducted into the El Paso Athletic Hall of Fame in 2002. Frank Castillo died in a drowning accident on July 28, 2013 while with his two daughters at Bartlett Lake, near their home in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was 44. |
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