Second baseman Starlin Castro said he's willing to try third base -- if the Yankees actually want to go through with it this time.

He added that the team hasn't approached him about learning a new position in spring training yet.

"I'll do whatever they want," Castro said Tuesday. "Whatever they want. Whatever they want me to do. I just want to help the team win. Whatever they want me to do to do better to help the team, I'm in."

The Yankees discussed giving Castro reps at third base while the ex-shortstop learned to be a full-time second baseman last spring.

They ultimately didn't even go there. Here was manager Joe Girardi's reasoning in March:

"It's more a product of Starlin trying to get him really comfortable at second base because that's where he's going to be playing most of the time. And he's going to have to play some short, probably, so we just felt that it was probably in our best interest."

A few thoughts:

1.) Still makes sense: The Yankees used Chase Headley for 140 games at third base last year. Donovan Solano saw action there, too. Rob Refsnyder played an inning at third and Alex Rodriguez got exactly one out there. Ronald Torreyes got the majority of the backup work at the position (34 games). Torreyes is a fine defender but doesn't help much offensively. If Castro could spell Headley more often, maybe it would open a spot for Refsnyder to play more often at second. The Yankees have repeatedly looked for ways to get his bat in the lineup.

2.) Still not easy: Third base is tough, obviously. What else is tough? Second base. Castro endured growing pains at the position last year and the Yankees obviously felt it would be best to not try to drop an entirely new position on him while he's learning a different one. Castro, 26, still has room to grow at second and maybe the Yankees will just let him stay there again.

3.) Shallow prospect depth: If Headley went down, the Yankees wouldn't have a youngster to plug into the spot. Their best third base prospect, 21-year-old Miguel Andujar, will likely start the season at Double-A.

Brendan Kuty may be reached at bkuty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendanKutyNJ. Find NJ.com Yankees on Facebook.