former major league catcher Jesus Montero He died recently, El Extrabase reported. The report states that Montero was involved in a serious traffic accident on October 5 and died a few days later in the hospital. Montero was only 35 years old at the time.
Montero is known for being one of the league’s best prospects in the early 2010s. Signed by the Yankees from Venezuela as an amateur, Montero made his professional debut in 2007 at the age of 17. In his second pro season, he broke out at the Single-A level, hitting .326/.376/.491 with 17 home runs and 34 doubles in 132 games. Montero’s strong performance earned him widespread attention leading up to the 2009 season, when he became a consensus top-50 prospect in the sport.
The young star of the future continued to shoot upwards from there. His 2009 season was cut short by a broken finger and he played in only 92 games, but he performed well when healthy and looked fully capable in 44 games at the Double-A level. That was enough to earn him a promotion to Triple-A at the start of the 2010 season, at which point Montero was viewed as a consensus top-5 prospect in the sport. Baseball America even ranked him as the sport’s third-best rising star, behind the future Hall of Famer Bryce Harper and Mike Trout. Montero gave it his all in Triple-A in 2010, hitting .289/.353/.517 with 21 homers and 34 doubles in 123 games.
Montero’s next step was to the major leagues, and after spending most of the 2011 season in Triple-A, he finally made his major league debut with the Yankees on September 1 against the Red Sox at Fenway Park. Although Montero did not allow a hit in his first major league game, he was hit by a pitch and scored a run in Game 1. He continued to post incredible numbers down the stretch, posting a .328/.406/.590 slash line in 69 games. He made the Yankees’ playoff roster and entered Game 4 of the ALDS against the Tigers, where he went 2-for-2 with a run and an RBI.
This would be Montero’s last appearance in a Yankees uniform. In January 2012, he was traded to the Mariners, which was considered a blockbuster deal at the time. Montero and teammates Hector Nosy Shipped to Seattle in exchange for All-Star right-hander Michael Pineda and pitching prospects Jose Campos. Pineda didn’t quite achieve the buzz he had in his rookie season after being traded to New York, but he did post a 4.16 ERA in 89 games with the Yankees from 2014 to 2017 after battling injuries in his first two seasons with the team. Neither Noesi nor Campos made much of an impact in the major leagues, although Noesi did play in six seasons in the MLB.
As for Montero, as an everyday player in 2012, the rising star played catcher and DH for the Mariners. Unfortunately, his season didn’t go the way he or Seattle had hoped. Montero was solid enough at the plate, but hit just .260/.298/.386 with 15 doubles and 20 home runs. That’s about league-average performance, but Montero is still in his age-22 season and there’s every reason to be optimistic about his future takeoff. However, this did not materialize and Montero struggled early in the 2013 season before being sidelined with a torn meniscus and serving a 50-game ban due to the Biogensis scandal.
Montero only appeared in 73 major league games between 2013 and 2015 due to injuries, poor performance, and the aforementioned suspension. During that time, he hit a disappointing .217/.255/.374 in 243 games. The Mariners designated Montero for assignment before the 2016 season. He went on to play in the minor leagues for the Blue Jays and Orioles in 2016 and ’17, and was even selected to the Triple-A All-Star Game while playing for Triple-A Buffalo, but was suspended for a second time for using a banned substance.
Montero played in the Mexican League in 2017 and 2018 before making 29 appearances in the Venezuelan Winter League. He played his final professional baseball game during the 2020-21 Winter League. Montero appeared in a total of 226 MLB games over five seasons, hitting .253/.295/.398 with 28 home runs and 31 doubles.
We at MLB Trade Rumors extend our condolences to Montero’s family, friends, loved ones and former teammates.
