Santiago Casilla

Santiago Casilla (born July 25, 1980) is a Dominican former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2004 to 2018 for the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants. Casilla threw four pitches: a fastball, slider, curveball, and changeup.

Casilla originally signed with Oakland under the name of Jairo Garcia, listing his birthdate as 1983. He debuted with Oakland in 2004, pitching briefly for them that year and the next. In January 2006, he revealed his true name and age. 2007 marked the first time he pitched more than four games in a year for Oakland; he an initial boost to their bullpen but missed the latter part of the season with an injury. He appeared in 51 games in 2008, then was allowed to become a free agent after posting a 5.96 earned run average (ERA) in 2009.

The Giants signed Casilla in 2010; after starting the season in the minor leagues, he was called up in May and remained with the team for the rest of the season. Casilla won the World Series with the Giants that fall; he also won World Series championships in 2012 and 2014, one of only eight players with the team for all three championships. He replaced Brian Wilson as the closer for the Giants in late 2011 and again at the beginning of 2012, when Wilson was injured. Sergio Romo replaced him as the closer halfway through 2012, but Casilla reclaimed the role in 2014, holding it until the end of 2016. Three times with the Giants, he posted an ERA under 2.00.

After Casilla struggled in 2016, he became a free agent. The Athletics signed him in 2017, and he closed for them until they acquired Blake Treinen in August. He pitched the first half of 2018 with them, then finished the year in the minor leagues for the Colorado Rockies.

Early life Santiago Casilla was born on July 25, 1980, in San Cristóbal, Dominican Republic. He attended high school in Sabana Grande de Palenque. Casilla wanted to be a baseball player, but he was still unsigned at the age of 19, and most Major League Baseball (MLB) scouts in the Dominican Republic were more interested in signing younger prospects. Obtaining false papers from a friend, Casilla began pitching under the name of Jairo Garcia, listing his birthday as March 7, 1983. On January 31, 2000, he was signed as an amateur free agent by the Oakland Athletics. In 2001, he pitched in 12 games (7 starts) for the rookie league Arizona League Athletics, posting a 4–2 record, a 2.85 ERA, 50 strikeouts, 7 walks, and 37 hits allowed in innings pitched.

When the 2002 season began, Casilla remained with the Arizona League Athletics. In 13 games (8 starts), he had a 2–1 record, a 2.44 ERA, 66 strikeouts, 17 walks, and 56 hits allowed in 59 innings pitched before getting promoted to the Vancouver Canadians of the Single-A short season Northwest League on August 24. He appeared in two more games before being sent back to Sacramento on August 18. He picked up his first MLB save on June 6, retiring Manny Ramirez on a fly ball to end the eighth inning and pitching a scoreless ninth in a 3–2 win over the Boston Red Sox. On June 19, he entered a game against the Cincinnati Reds with the bases loaded and struck out Brandon Phillips to keep a run from scoring. He then struck out three batters in a scoreless top of the ninth inning, pumping his fist as he walked off the mound, though the Athletics failed to rally in the bottom of the inning and lost 5–2. Starting on July 15, however, he had a 7.28 ERA in 29 games over the remainder of the season. In 46 games for Oakland, he had a 3–1 record, two saves, a 4.44 ERA, 52 strikeouts, 23 walks, and 43 hits allowed in innings pitched. He made his Giants debut on May 21 against his former team in Oakland, striking out the only batter he faced (Daric Barton) in a 6–1 defeat. On June 6, after Giants closer Brian Wilson had blown a save against the Pittsburgh Pirates but San Francisco had retaken the lead in the 10th inning, Casilla relieved Wilson with one out and runners on first and second, retiring both batters he faced to earn his first National League (NL) save. After he allowed three runs and blew a lead against the Arizona Diamondbacks on July 23, though the Giants still won the game 7–4, his ERA rose from 2.25 to 3.48. On August 10, he set a career high with three innings pitched, allowing no runs, though the Giants lost 8–6 to the Chicago Cubs. In 52 games, he had a 7–2 record, two saves, a 1.95 ERA, 56 strikeouts, 26 walks, and 50 hits allowed in innings pitched. In Game 4 of the NL Division Series (NLDS) against the Atlanta Braves, with San Francisco leading 3–2, Casilla pitched a scoreless seventh inning. He also got two outs in the eighth inning before left-hander Javier López was summoned to finish the inning. The Giants won 3–2, clinching a trip to the NL Championship Series (NLCS) against the Philadelphia Phillies. Casilla came on in relief in Game 2 with the Giants trailing 3–1, the bases loaded, but two outs in the seventh. However, he gave up a bases-clearing double to Jimmy Rollins, and San Francisco lost 6–1. In Game 4, he allowed another bases-clearing double, this time to Placido Polanco but with only two men on base. Casilla also gave up a run of his own on a wild pitch. However, the Giants won 6–5 and went on to defeat the Phillies in six games. Against the Texas Rangers in Game 1 of the World Series, Casilla entered with the Giants up 8–4 and two runners on in the sixth. He struck out Elvis Andrus, then pitched a scoreless seventh as the Giants won 11–7. Casilla earned his first World Series ring as the Giants won the series in five games to win their first title since 1954.

2011 Casilla returned to the Giants in 2011, but after pitching on Opening Day (March 31), he was placed on the disabled list with inflammation in his right elbow. The injury had affected his velocity since spring training. After returning on May 28, he pitched well, keeping his ERA under 2.00 for most of the season. He took over as San Francisco's closer after Wilson went on the disabled list on August 21. Over the remainder of the year, he was a perfect 6-for-6 in save chances. Bochy removed him from the role on August 7, replacing him with Sergio Romo and Javier López for the rest of the year. Casilla picked up his first career base hit, a bases-loaded, two-out RBI ground ball single between Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt and second baseman Aaron Hill, on September 14 in a 6–2 win. "I think we were all kind of shocked he made contact," Giants manager Bruce Bochy stated. "He found a good place." In 73 games, he had a 7–6 record, a 2.84 ERA, 55 strikeouts, 22 walks, and 55 hits allowed in innings pitched.

The Giants won the NL West again in 2012. Casilla appeared in all five games of the NLDS against the Cincinnati Reds. However, he allowed no runs in the other four games, as San Francisco won the series in five games. In Game 4, he came on with two outs in the ninth and got Gerald Laird to ground out to end the inning, then picked up the win after the Giants scored in the 10th, sweeping the Detroit Tigers to win the series.

2013 On December 17, 2012, Casilla received a contract extension for $15 million over three years, along with an option for a fourth season. Prior to the 2013 MLB season, Casilla represented the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic, pitching five scoreless innings as his country won the tournament. On May 21, Casilla was placed on the 15-day disabled list with knee soreness, ultimately requiring surgery to remove a cyst. He did not return until July 13. On September 11, he had his second save of the year, pitching a scoreless ninth in a 4–3 win over the Colorado Rockies. In 57 games, he had a 7–2 record, two saves, a 2.16 ERA, 38 strikeouts, 25 walks, and 39 hits allowed in 50 innings pitched. He was activated on June 16. On June 30, Bochy removed the struggling Romo from the closer role on that date, announcing that the team intended to go to a closer-by-committee. However, Casilla got most of the opportunities for the rest of the season. He converted 17 saves for the rest of the year, blowing only one on August 27, in a game the Giants won anyway. In the NLDS against the Washington Nationals, Casilla made three scoreless appearances, earning two saves as the Giants defeated Washington in four games. Against the Cardinals in the NLCS, he pitched scoreless innings in three of the first four games, earning saves in Game 1 and Game 4. He made only two appearances in the World Series against the Kansas City Royals, recording an out apiece in Games 2 and 3, both losses.

2015 Casilla remained the Giants closer in 2015. He picked up back-to-back wins against the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 22 and 23, pitching scoreless innings in 3–2 victories. From August 13 through September 27, he converted 10 straight saves, posting an 0.56 ERA.

2016 After his successful 2015 season, Casilla struggled in 2016. On May 12, Bochy pulled him from a save situation against the Diamondbacks, opting to have left-hander López face the left-handed Jake Lamb after Casilla had loaded the bases. López got the out, but Casilla was angry with Bochy afterwards, saying, "I thought he had confidence in me." He blew his ninth save of the year on September 17 and drew boos from the fans at AT&T Park. Afterwards, he told reporters, "I’m having bad luck. I try to do my best. I’m not going to be sad or kill myself. It’s a game."

The Giants reached the playoffs again as a Wild Card team in 2016, then defeated the New York Mets in the 2016 NL Wild Card Game. His only appearance of the NLDS against the Cubs came in Game 2, when he got the final two outs of the sixth inning in a 5–2 loss. In Game 4, the Giants led 5–2 entering the ninth. Though it was a save situation, Bochy opted not to use Casilla. The Cubs rallied against five other Giants relievers and won 6–5 to clinch the series. After the season, the Giants declined their option on Casilla, making him a free agent. With the Giants, his playoff ERA was 0.92. Steward suggested that had Casilla not pitched for the Giants, the team would not have won any of those World Series. Visa problems caused him to be three weeks late to spring training, and he decided not to pitch for the Dominican Republic in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, even though he had initially been selected to the team. He was expected to compete for the closer's role, though Jane Lee of MLB.com wrote in January that the likely favorite was Ryan Madson, who had closed for the Athletics the season before. Doolittle was out during the month of May with a strained left shoulder, however, giving Casilla the bulk of the early-season opportunities. He converted saves in 14 of 17 chances through the end of June but struggled in July, blowing three of five save opportunities. In August, he was replaced as closer by the newly acquired Blake Treinen. He was 16 for 23 in save opportunities. In 63 games, he had a 4–5 record and an ERA of 4.27 with 57 strikeouts in 59 innings pitched. On July 13, he entered a game against the Giants with the bases loaded and no one out in the seventh. He allowed all three of the runners to score, one of which was on a wild pitch, and the Athletics lost 7–1. The next day, he was designated for assignment. Five days later, he was released. He spent the rest of the year in Triple–A with the PCL's Albuquerque Isotopes. In 12 games, he had an 0–2 record, an 8.03 ERA, 12 strikeouts, nine walks, and 16 hits in innings.

Career overall Statistics and achievements Category !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! He also threw a curveball and an occasional changeup. Though relief pitchers often specialize in one or two pitches, Casilla's time as a starting pitcher in the minor leagues caused him to develop a four-pitch repertoire.

Casilla's fastball travelled up to . He stopped throwing the curveball from 2007 through 2009. Unlike Giants relievers such as Wilson and Romo, Casilla usually maintained a calm demeanor on the mound. "I am emotional, but I try to keep that inside," he says.