Nick Castellanos expects to stay and lead rebuilding Detroit Tigers

Before he was asked the question, Nick Castellanos already had provided the answer.

Castellanos took a seat with reporters as the Detroit Tigers’ three-day winter caravan concluded Saturday with TigerFest — a fun-filled day of players and fans mingling together at Comerica Park. The line of questioning was predictable, about topics like his move to right field, the chances of him signing a long-term contract extension and the new layers of leadership inside the Tigers’ clubhouse.

And with every answer, Castellanos made it clear he was ready for the final query: Is he ready to become a franchise player?

“I would love to,” he said. “When I sit in my backyard and I’m looking up and just daydreaming about my dream career, it’s, I’m the kid that helped bring the World Series back to Detroit.

“That’s plan A: I never leave and I play 23 years in the big leagues here and I’m an unbelievable rightfielder and now I’m in conversations with Al Kaline. That’s the dream. That’s the goal. That’s what I love.”

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On display was a mature Castellanos, one who is entering his fifth full season with the Tigers. It was a comfortable Castellanos, similar to the one who scorched through September with little protection in the lineup last season. And it was a confident Castellanos, one with a mindset the team is hoping will produce the next great Tigers’ leader — at least for the next two seasons.

Castellanos spoke on a number of topics, including his full-time transition to right field, which he prepared for this off-season with a training regimen similar to that of a football cornerback. He let people in on his leadership style and painted the picture of a player who — without the support of long-gone veteran players — is poised to perform better with bigger expectations placed on his shoulders.

“All I tried to focus on was breaking down those walls and being a little kid again,” he said. “When I was little, I was always the best athlete on the team. I was always the fastest, the shortstop, I was this and that and as I got older, as I got close to being a first-round pick, I got put into a bubble.”

Don’t play basketball, his coaches and parents told him. He might get hurt. Don’t go skiing. And definitely don’t play football.

“Like, what are athletes?” Castellanos said. “Athletes as adults are just kids who never stop doing athletic stuff.”

So this offseason, Castellanos focused on more athletic-based training with power, speed and athleticism. A lot of cone drills and changing directions.

Not that his athleticism is in question. It was evident last spring and carried over to the regular season, when he turned in a career season offensively and led the American League in triples.

“To be honest, I love it out there,” he said. “I’m excited to get really good. I want to be called a very good outfielder.”

Castellanos thinks his arm is going to play better in the outfield. That his increased speed will be an asset. That his mental toughness will make a difference.

“I think that being out there and being in a relaxed state of mind and not so tense at third base is also going to help me offensively," Castellanos said. "And I think you saw when I got put out there, the whole month of September, it was literally like playing ‘backyard baseball’ for me, just joking around with the center fielder, having fun, hitting, doing whatever I could for winning.”

Castellanos — who could form part of a young core of Tigers leaders along with catcher James McCann and starting pitcher Michael Fulmer — described himself as a “playful” leader.

“My goal is that win, lose or draw, we’re kids playing baseball and the rebuild is going to be as fun or as miserable as we make it,” he said.

That leadership style, he said, was influenced by former Tigers Ian Kinsler, Torii Hunter and David Price. From Kinsler, he took his “dirtbag” mentality. From Hunter, “Treating everybody as an equal.” And from Price, “Take pride in everything that you do.”

Castellanos spoke more assuredly than years past, even though all of his offseason training doesn’t guarantee success in right field. His name continues to surface in trade rumors, and all the leadership in the world likely won’t put the Tigers above .500 this season.

Still, it was the sign of a player who finally is comfortable and relishes the challenge ahead.

“I’m actually looking forward to this a lot,” he said. “Coming up all throughout my amateur career, I was always a leader on the team, but it wasn’t something that I tried to be.

“It was just, I was always really good so I was having the most fun, so I was trying to make everyone else have as much fun as I was having. It’s amazing what happens and how much better you come at what you’re doing when you enjoy what you’re doing.”

And with the attention focused on him more than ever before, it was clear Nick Castellanos was enjoying it.

Contact Anthony Fenech: afenech@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @anthonyfenech.