After seven seasons with the San Francisco Giants, Santiago Casilla is heading back to where it all started for him. He has signed a two-year contract with Oakland Athletics, the team that originally signed him as an amateur free agent in 2000.
The response to Casilla leaving has been pretty predictable, but the disdain that he’s receiving is rather unnecessary.
2016 was not a good year for Casilla, there is no denying that. He led baseball with nine blown saves, contributing a large chunk to the team’s league-leading 32 blown saves. He allowed 1.2 home runs per nine innings, a .