he Chicago Cubs acquired one of the better infielders at the trade deadline in utility man Willi Castro.

While the 28-year-old infielder has struggled in his short time with the Cubs, Rich Eberwein from Cubbies Crib believes the team should try to extend him before the end of the season.

“This may be seem like a weird one, but not really,” wrote Eberwein. “The Cubs instantly gained a ton of flexibility when Castro came to the team from Minnesota. He can play every position on the field except for catcher, which give the Cubs the ability to rotate days off for their starting players. This is something the previous iteration of the team’s bench was unable to give, since Vidal Brujan and Jon Berti have been abysmal at the plate this year, and Justin Turner is really only effective against lefties.”

Castro hasn’t hit well in his 25 at-bats with the Cubs — just .160 with four hits. However, Chicago knows he’s going to come around and hit better like he did with the Minnesota Twins. Even with a struggling bat, his defense helps to justify an extension while the bat comes around.

“Castro can play good on defense everywhere on the diamond, and give a competitive at-bat at the plate as a switch-hitter,” wrote Eberwein. “Castro is only making $2 million in 2025, which is pretty fair for a bench guy. A little extension of two years at $6 million would go a long way in solidifying the bench for the next couple seasons to avoid the horrendous production the Cubs got in the first half.”

The Cubs can keep Castro under contract and help extend the club’s contention window as Chicago looks to stick around as a contender beyond this season.