SAN FRANCISCO — Willi Castro joined the Twins last year on a minor league deal, a non-roster invite who was just fighting to make the team out of spring training.

He did, thanks to a couple of injuries, and he quickly established himself as one of the most pivotal players on the roster with his versatility allowing manager Rocco Baldelli almost endless options.

The Twins have been singing his praises for a season and a half now, but on Thursday, his contributions were recognized across the league when the super utilityman was named to the American League All-Star team as a replacement for Astros second baseman Jose Altuve. The game will take place on July 16 in Arlington, Texas.

“If you think about it, he’s the real MVP of this team. He plays everywhere. If somebody gets hurt, he replaces them with no problem,” shortstop Carlos Correa, also an All-Star this year, said last month. “If you ask him to play second, he plays great defense at second base. If you ask him to play shortstop, left, center, it doesn’t matter. He plays everywhere. When you have a guy like that, he makes you so much better as a team. I think we should appreciate him way more than we do already. He’s a real great player.”

Castro stepped in at third when Royce Lewis got hurt in the first game of the season. He filled in at short when Correa got injured, in center when Byron Buxton landed on the injured list and lately, he’s been seeing much of his time at second base since Edouard Julien was optioned to Triple-A.

The switch hitter has also played his fair share of left field this season, becoming one of just two players in major league history to play 20 games at five different defensive positions in a season.

“Everything that we do is affected and the number of options that we have are almost compounded based on the presence of Willi Castro,” manager Rocco Baldelli said last month. “ … He allows us to almost make whatever decisions we want to make. Daily decisions, roster decisions, every kind of decision.”

Castro currently has a 2.7 bWAR (Wins Above Replacement per Baseball Reference), which is second on the team behind just Correa. He’s hitting .268 with a 121 OPS+, a mark that represents 21 percent better than the league average hitter.

Days earlier, manager Rocco Baldelli had expressed his disappointment that only one Twin had been named to the All-Star team.

Now, Castro, who has appeared in every single Twins game this season, will have his chance to be honored on the national stage.

“I don’t know how much more clear it can be that he’s having an all-star season,” Baldelli said in June. “He’s done a fantastic job.”

Related Articles

Twins prep for three draft picks within top 60

Saints surrender 4-0 lead over final three innings, lose to Louisville Bats on walkoff homer

Twins salvage doubleheader with split in Chicago

Marney Gellner makes history as first woman to call Twins game

Twins, White Sox postponed; doubleheader set for Wednesday