ANAHEIM – The Angels today acquired RHP Gerardo Reyes from the San Diego Padres in exchange for C Jason Castro. Today’s announcement was made by General Manager Billy Eppler.
Reyes, 27, has not appeared in the Majors for San Diego this season, but was on the Alternate Training Site roster at the University of San Diego. He appeared in 27 games for the Padres last year, going 4-0 and recording 38 strikeouts in 26 innings of work after making his Major League debut April 12, 2019 at Arizona. His 13.2 strikeouts per nine innings rate ranked 10th in the National League (min. 25 IP). Additionally, in 34 games for Triple-A El Paso, he went 4-2 with a 3.57 ERA (45.1 IP – 18 ER) with 61 strikeouts and 20 walks.
A native of Ciudad, Victoria, Mexico, Reyes was originally signed as an amateur free agent by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2013 after pitching collegiately at Galveston College (Galveston, TX). He was traded by the Rays to the Padres on Dec. 19, 2014 as part of a three-team deal with the Nationals. In 186 career minor league game (all in relief), is 14-14 with a 3.23 ERA (248 IP – 89 ER) and 281 strikeouts. He has averaged 10.2 strikeouts per innings in his minor league career, including a 12.1 rate at the Triple-A level.
Castro, 33, batted .192 (10/52) with five runs scored, four doubles, two home runs and six RBI in 18 games for the Angels this season. The Castro Valley, CA native signed a one-year deal with the Angels on Jan. 7, 2020. A veteran of 10 Major League seasons, Castro owns a .231 (629/2726) career average with 88 home runs and 298 RBI in 843 career games for the Astros (2010, 2012-16), Twins (2017-19) and Angels (2020).