How Nick Castellanos learned to embrace Philly after dreaming of playing for the Marlins

PHILADELPHIA — He’s in the same division as the Miami Marlins, which means the alternate universe is never too far from Nick Castellanos’ mind.

It took Castellanos time — a long time — to suppress those thoughts. He wanted to play for the Marlins. They were his boyhood love. Most of his family, including his oldest son, Liam, lives in Miami. As a free agent after the 2021 season, Castellanos could have control over his destination. And, all of a sudden, Derek Jeter was on the phone. He wanted to talk business.

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“If I wasn’t advised to be patient and wait until after the lockout to sign,” Castellanos said Monday afternoon, “I would have been over there.”

Over there is the visiting dugout at Citizens Bank Park this week. The 84-win Marlins are here for a best-of-three Wild Card Series, trying to spoil what the Phillies believe is a legitimate chance to win a championship. The Marlins are a little plucky and possess good pitching. They are led by a first-year manager. There is no squinting required. They resemble last year’s Phillies, who upstaged the whole National League.

But the Phillies learned something last October and, maybe, Castellanos is the embodiment of it all. He did not know how badly he needed to feel October in Philadelphia. He slogged through the disappointing first year of a $100 million deal until the clouds cleared when the Phillies made the postseason. They kept winning. They loved each other. The city loved them.

Castellanos began to accept the circumstances that brought him to Philadelphia and not Miami. He came within two wins of a World Series title last year. He felt more comfortable in his surroundings this season and he hit .272/.311/.476. Maybe he is where he’s supposed to be.

“No doubt,” Castellanos said. “You don’t always get what you want. But you get what you need. You know? To be here in Philly, to be a part of the expectations that this team has, to play with these players … I know at the end of this …”

He paused. He thought for a minute about the next words.

“I know at the end of this,” Castellanos said, “it’s going to be a chapter in my journey that is going to be a necessity.”

Castellanos has not seen Liam in a month. Liam was a fixture inside the Phillies clubhouse for much of the summer; he challenged anyone willing to a game at the ping-pong table. He had the time of his life. He took batting practice against Roger Clemens. He went to the All-Star Game with his dad. But school is back in session and Liam lives in Florida with his mom. It’s where he belongs right now.

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This is why Castellanos wanted to sign with the Marlins two years ago.

“As he starts his journey on becoming a man — school and jiu-jitsu and baseball, I’m only hearing about it through a phone across the country,” Castellanos said. “That’s very heavy for me. It’s a heavy weight for me to bear because of how up-my-ass my dad was with me every single day. Every day, every morning, every night. That constant hammering made me — in quotations — ‘great.’ You know? That’s what my father was for me. As he’s getting older, the more and more I feel that I fall short of what my dad was for me.”

This is why Castellanos savored the time with Liam this summer. He found the Phillies — from management to teammates to clubhouse staff — supportive of Liam’s presence. Castellanos appreciated it. It made him feel better.

Castellanos thought about his formative baseball memories and he realized that, when he was Liam’s age, he saw the 2003 Marlins win a title. He wanted to do that for the Marlins. “I didn’t understand that organizations are mainly about the people that represent them behind the scenes,” Castellanos said. “I only saw the symbol and the name on the front of the jersey.” But, two years ago, Jeter was part of Marlins ownership and Castellanos could see the future.

“Out of anybody in the last 100 years, he’s probably had the most respected career. Period,” Castellanos said. “If you were asking me what my dream was when I was entering free agency, it was me being able to go home, be with my son all the time, playing for a team that I was a fan of — as well as helping one of the most-respected baseball players to ever play in the last 100 years chase down his sixth championship. That was something that I needed no fuel for to wake up in the morning.”

The 99-day lockout changed everything. Jeter departed the Marlins when a rift among ownership emerged. Once the MLB owners ended the lockout, free agents scrambled to secure the best deals. Miami was no longer interested in Castellanos. The Phillies extended to a franchise-record payroll to sign him.

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“I can never sit and say I am unfortunate because I’m blessed and I get to play here,” Castellanos said. “I get to play for a great organization. I get to play with one of the most intense fan bases in the sports world. I have so much gratitude for all of that.”

It just took time to realize that.

Earlier this season, a stranger stopped Castellanos on the field. It was Joe McEwing, the Bristol, Pa., native who had a long big-league career as an infielder and as a coach. He’s the bench coach in St. Louis now.

“He told me he was proud of me,” Castellanos said.

Castellanos was a little confused. McEwing explained he had watched him from afar — especially when Castellanos was a young Tigers infielder and McEwing worked for the White Sox as a coach. He asked Castellanos how he liked Philly.

“I’m really learning to understand it,” Castellanos said to McEwing. “I’m genuinely starting to be happy every time I come back here after a road trip.”

McEwing laughed.

“Yeah, man,” he said. “It’s a tough place. But it’s going to prepare you for whatever it is that you’re going to endure in life after the fact.”

This has stuck with Castellanos.

“I mean, he couldn’t be more spot on,” Castellanos said. “You know? Because they pay so much attention. They care so much. They hold you to that standard. To be able to wake up and be OK with being under a microscope every single day, that’s something that not everybody is used to right off the bat.”

He is now. Everyone is watching in October and, against Miami’s many left-handed pitchers, Castellanos is an important piece to the Phillies’ puzzle. He found peace last October and now knows what to expect.

All of the Phillies do.

“I love my teammates,” Castellanos said. “You learn that you play for the people beside you. The people in the clubhouse. I’m fortunate that I have f—king unbelievable teammates that are having great careers while balancing being a baseball player with their families.”

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He dreamed of playing for the Marlins. Now, facing them, there is no extra motivation. The regret has faded and, when Castellanos steps onto the grass Tuesday night with 46,000 people screaming for him to succeed, the task is clear.

“I mean, I want to win a World Series,” Castellanos said. “And they’re in the way of that.”

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(Top photo: Jeff Robinson / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

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