Archive for Jesus Montero
Montero, McAllister among EL’s best
Posted by: | CommentsAfter ranking as the second best prospect in the High-A Florida State League, Jesus Montero followed that up by placing fifth in the Double-A Eastern League, according to Baseball America. Zach McAllister came in at #19, while old pal Jose Tabata checked in at #15. In the subscriber only report, one AL scout said of Montero: “When he shows up to play, it’s pretty good. I don’t think he’ll get away with showing up every other night in the big leagues, especially behind the plate, but it could just be youthful mistakes.” This is the first I’ve heard of him “taking days off,” but if he hit .317-.370-.539 as a 19-yr old in the EL playing every other day, imagine what he could do if he actually applied himself.
As for McAllister, one EL manager said he “competed and threw four pitches for strikes, and both the breaking balls were tough to handle.” It also notes that he’s mostly upper-80’s with the fastball, knocking his ceiling down to a back-end starter. Such is life.
Montero, Romulo Sanchez among those to play winter ball
Posted by: | CommentsFor the third straight year, megaprospect Jesus Montero will be playing winter ball in his home country of Venezuela. This year he’s going to suit up for the Navegantes del Magallanes of the Venezuelan Winter League, were he’ll be teammates with fellow countrymen and fellow Yankee prospects Reegie Corona and Marcos Vechionacci. Big bad Romulo Sanchez will also be playing in the VWL, except for Leones del Caracas.
At the moment, the only other Yankees farmhands listed on a winter ball roster are Danny Gil and Walt Ibarra, who will both play for Naranjeros de Hermosillo of the Mexican Winter League. At least half of the clubs in the various Caribbean leagues still haven’t released their roster, so make sure you check back to see who else is playing ball this winter. I promise you, there will be plenty more.
Meanwhile, the Arizona Fall League season starts on Tuesday, so DotF will return in an abbreviated format. Here’s the Surprise Rafters roster in case you forgot who the Yanks are sending. The Caribbean leagues don’t start until later this winter.
Montero, Romine ranked the two best catchers in the FSL
Posted by: | CommentsContinuing on with their league top 20’s, Baseball America named Jesus Montero and Austin Romine the second and tenth best prospects, respectively, in the High-A Florida State League. Montero was behind only Mike Stanton of the Marlins, and the pair were the only two catchers to appear on the list. In the subscriber only scouting report, Montero was called “the toughest out in the league,” while Romine was noted as having very few weaknesses in his game.
The Eastern League comes out on Friday, so Montero might be making an encore appearance.
How good is Jesus Montero?
Posted by: | CommentsI’ll give you a hint: very good. EJ Fagan at TYU took a look at the Yanks’ best prospect, particularly how his defense has progressed and how his 2009 offensive season shook out, determining that yeah, Mr. Montero is pretty freakin’ special. I’ll say this, the kid is legimately the best position player prospect the Yanks have had since Derek Jeter in the early-to-mid 1990’s. Get excited, people.
Montero out for remainder of season with fractured finger
Posted by: | CommentsPeteAbe has the news. Montero broke the middle finger on his right (throwing) hand after catching a pitch in last night’s game. He’ll be out 4-6 weeks according to the team, meaning he’s out for the rest of the minor league but could return in time for a stint in winter ball. Montero finished the season at .337-.389-.562 with 17 homers.
From the Archives: Doubts about Montero
Posted by: | CommentsJesus Montero has become a household name among Yankee fans who follow the minors. He’s 19 and utterly mashing at AA. On Sunday, he hit his fourth home run in his last nine games, and on the AA year, he is hitting .306/.363/.529.
The Trenton numbers, though, represent just half of Montero’s season. Looking at both his Tampa and Trenton numbers, the kid is an utter beast. He is hitting .332/.386/.558 with 17 home runs and 67 RBIs. He is now one of the game’s best prospects — number three overall, according to a recent Baseball America update — and the Yanks’ clear number one prospect. He could be up in the Bronx by mid-2010 but will probably not arrive until 2011.
He wasn’t always this well-respected. A 2006 Baseball America column by John Manuel cast some doubt on Montero’s future. Wrote the prospect expert:
The Yankees reportedly gave another international player $2 million this year, but reports on Jesus Montero have not been good ever since the Yankees signed him for that amount in July. Montero has been dogged by rumors that he fudged his age or worse, and sources had indicated for weeks that his contract was under review by the commissioner’s office at the Yankees’ request.
Newman confirmed that the Yankees and Montero, a Venezuelan catcher with prodigious power potential, had “long, involved” negotiations. He would not comment on the value of Montero’s signing bonus, but said one source’s information–that Montero’s bonus had been restructured to $1.3 million–was not correct. His only on the record comment was that “there is no age issue” with Montero, who struggled in the Yankees’ fall mini-camp.
Those “not good” reports have since vanished into thin air. Everyone loves Jesus Montero, and he has emerged as one of the Yankees’ “untouchable” prospects. What the future holds for Montero no one really knows. It’s always amusing though to relive the past. Once upon a time, BA wasn’t sure about Jesus. Now, he’s one of the game’s most heralded young hitters. Funny how that works.
Montero added to Eastern League All-Star roster
Posted by: | CommentsDespite playing in just 26 of Double-A Trenton’s 83 games this year, catcher Jesus Montero has been added to the Eastern League’s Northern Division All-Star Team as a replacement for the injured Josh Thole. He’ll be the sixth … uh … Thunderer to make the team, joining Zach McAllister, Josh Schmidt, Jorge Vazquez, Reegie Corona, and Eduardo Nunez, not to mention Trenton’s coaching staff. Montero is hitting .299-.364-.505 as a 19-yr old in a traditionally pitcher-friendly league and a very pitcher-friendly park.
This year’s Eastern League All-Star Game is being played in Trenton’s Waterfront Park, so here’s your chance to catch some of the very best prospects in the game all in one place without too much hassle. I’ll have a preview of the game up in the coming days.
Quick Links: Matsui, Montero, Venditte, Sanchez
Posted by: | CommentsSome quick links for you to read as you get ready to fire up the grill, if you haven’t already.
- Longtime reader Cameron emailed along this cool little nugget about Hideki Matsui from the Yomiuri Giants 1998 Season Preview: “It’s rumored that the clumsy center fielder will move to third base in 1998.” Hideki Matsui at third base? I can’t imagine …
- Erik Manning at FanGraphs wrote about the almighty Jesus Montero. In short, the kid’s good. Real good.
- Baseball America released their midseason minor league All-Star team, and the only Yankee farmhand to make the cut is switch pitcher Pat Venditte. You can certainly make a case for Montero over Carlos Santana, but Santana’s absolutely worthy.
- Another Latin American catcher, the recently signed Gary Sanchez, will report to the Rookie level Gulf Coast League Yankees within two weeks according to BP’s Kiley McDaniel. This is unheard, international signees typically sign contracts which begin the follow the season, and at best start their first professional season in Extended Spring Training. The Yanks must think this kid is really advanced.
- Beyond the Box Score took a quick look at the fastball of the recently defected Aroldis Chapman. Shockingly, the Yanks are interested in Chapmn’s services.
Jesus Montero, catcher
Posted by: | CommentsIn The Journal-News today, Peter Abraham profiles Jesus Montero, the Yanks’ 19-year-old catching prospect. Montero, 19, is six-foot-four and weighs 225 pounds. Most baseball analysts see his big league position as first base, but Tony Peña and Montero believe Jesus’ future lies behind the dish. No matter the role, Montero could mature into a top offensive threat.
Open Thread: Oh no, minor injuries
Posted by: | CommentsPeteAbe has a couple of small injury notes:
· Jesus Montero (strained right groin) was injured sliding to track down a passed ball. Joe Girardi said it seemed like a “moderate” strain. Given his status and youth, they’ll be cautious bringing him back.
· Jon Albaladejo caught a ball off the back of his left leg near the ankle and has a bruise. He’s day-to-day.
A pair of small nothings, if you ask me. Both guys have plenty of time to get healthy before the season starts. The more important injury news, that you might have missed earlier, is that Jorge Posada’s shoulder is okay, and he could DH as soon as tomorrow. My educated guess it that the team will hold him back until Tuesday.
Former Yankee Updates: Chad Jennings checks in on some former Yankees and how they’re faring during Spring Training. Of note is the news that Carl Pavano managed to throw two scoreless innings without chipping a nail, stubbing his toe or bursting his appendix.
Here’s your open thread for the night. The Nets are the only local team in action because the Devils won this afternoon. Anything goes, just be nice.
