Nicholas Castellanos Has Awesome Story Behind New Jersey Number Choice With Cubs

The Chicago Cubs made a splash Wednesday by adding one of the best hitters on the trade market in Detroit's Nicholas Castellanos. The utility man should make a great addition to an already-stacked Cubs lineup as they aim to lock down an NL Central title in the final two months of the season.

When it came time for Castellanos to pick a number with his new club, his former No. 9 was unavailable, with All-star Shortstop Javier Báez already wearing it. Luckily, though, Castellanos had a better option: No. 6.

Those are two pretty great reasons. Al Kaline is one of the MLB's all-time legends, and now, Castellanos can tell his son he's wearing the number just for him. We'll see if he's locked in to change his number every time his son has a birthday, though.

Castellanos has been slumping of late, batting just .242 in his last 15 games, but there's no reason that he can't return to form under the tutelage of hitting coach Anthony Iapoce. The outfielder/third baseman hit over 20 home runs in each of the last two seasons, and a change of scenery from hitter-unfriendly Comerica Park should do wonders for his power stats.

Plus, his new number should give him some extra motivation to play well for his little guy.