Speculation, urging aside, Cubs’ Starlin Castro has no plans to seek ADD diagnosis

PITTSBURGH – It’s called attention deficit disorder, or ADD.

“I know what it is,” Starlin Castro said.

That doesn’t mean the Cubs’ shortstop wants to know anything more than that about the subject.

Throughout Castro’s career, mental lapses, moments of lost focus and inexplicable errors on routine plays have raised speculation among fans, scouts and even some in his organization – including the clubhouse — that he has a form of the common disorder.

In recent years some close to him have encouraged him to be tested, according to sources.

But he doesn’t want to be, he said, even if a diagnosis and treatment could raise his performance – even as a three-month slump, and more recent fielding issues, have called the three-time All-Star’s playing time into question down the stretch.

ADD/ADHD drugs such as the amphetamine Adderall are said to be effective enough that they’ve even been used as performance enhancers by athletes who don’t have medical reasons to take it.

About 10 percent of major leaguers have therapeutic use exemptions for that drug – or about twice the national adult prevalence of ADHD.

Castro, 25, said he doesn’t take drugs for any conditions and doesn’t like the idea of starting. In this case, he said, team officials have never asked him to be tested.

“If somebody tells me, `You need this, go try it,’ I’ll go try,” he said. “But I don’t think I want to do it on my own.”

Said manager Joe Maddon: “I’m glad to hear that, actually.”

Maddon said he’s never thought about Castro’s issues in medical terms, and he’s against that kind of approach in general, anyway.

“I’m not into all this over-medicating of children and young adults,” said Maddon, who acknowledged there probably are cases where it can help. “I’m not convinced yet that this is the right tack to take. With anybody.

“Here’s a kid that’s almost got 1,000 hits. He’s 25 years old. He’s having a tough year. But I watch his work, and his work is good. He’s done so many good things. And I think he’s been trying a little bit too hard, and I think the potential to be traded has bothered him a little bit, too.”

Asked before Wednesday’s game about scenarios in which Castro might not be the everyday shortstop at some point down the stretch, Maddon avoided a direct answer – pointing Tuesday’s night, when Castro had a pair of RBI doubles and a sharp game in the field.

“That’s the kind of game I believe he’s capable of on a real consistent basis,” said Maddon, who then watched Castro and rookie Kris Bryant get tangled up on a slow grounder in Wednesday’s fifth – allowing a run to score.

“He’s made some real elementary mistakes, absolutely,” Maddon said. “But he’s made some really good plays, too. I still look at his birth certificate. The guy’s 25.”

Whatever changes might be coming, Castro said he doesn’t worry or press.

“I don’t think I have any pressure,” he said. “I know me. I know what I can do. I know I can be out there. I know