A product of Cuba's sugar cane fields, right handed Julian Castillo was the best power hitter of the 20th century's first decade, routinely hitting between .294 and .408 in an era dominated by pitching when the norm was averaging between .220 - .250. In Castillo's era baseball games were played only on weekends after the field work was done. Thus, team only used their top two pitchers, and hitters couldn't feast on lesser staff members.

Hitting .454 in his rookie year (1901), Castillo won four batting titles over his 13-year career. He also led the league in home runs 2 times, hits 3 times, doubles 6 times, and triples 4 times. He reportedly wasn't a good fielder or baserunner, so his batting had to make up for his weaknesses--and these were in parks with outfield fences that ranged from 400-500 feet. His .310 batting average is the highest of his era.

Castillo also played in the Negro league from 1904-1912, but statistics from those times were never collected. He was elected to the Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame in 1943.