Blue Jays deal for exiled catcher
Sometimes you just have to scratch your head at moves made by some majorleague teams. The Blue Jays on Monday obtained the contract of catcher Miguel Montero, and cash, from the Chicago Cubs for a player to be named later, or cash. The money sent to the Jays by the Cubs will pay some, or all, of the $7 million remaining on Montero’s contract that expires at the end of this year.
Montero, a 34-year-old, 12-year veteran from Caracas, Venezuela, had been designated for assignment by the Cubs on June 28, called “a bad teammate” by team president Theo Epstein and “a selfish player” by first baseman Anthony Rizzo. Is that the type of player a struggling team adds on July 3 to key a second-half resurgence, or is it the beginning of something else?
What was the cause of the Cubs vs. Montero rift? The catcher, who is remembered for a big hit in Game 7 of the 2016 World Series, was behind the plate when Washington stole seven bases against him in four innings last Monday in what would be his final game with Chicago.
Following the game, when speaking to reporters, Montero blamed Cubs pitchers, especially Jake Arrieta, that night’s starter, for not doing a good job of holding runners on base. For the season, base-stealers are 31-1 against Montero, with that one caught stealing on June 9 the result of a pickoff by the pitcher.
Montero was set to report to the Jays’ team hotel on Monday night and be in uniform on Tuesday. So what role is Montero to have if, as manager John Gibbons maintains, Russell Martin is still the main man behind the plate?
“We’ve got to do something,” Gibbons said.
When asked whether that something must be with a catcher, his response was: “Something. I’ve heard some good things about (Montero). He can swing the bat and, then, we’ll see.”
The Jays have just 13 position players on any given day, with four bench players, so it’s impossible that two of those would be extra catchers. The odd man out appears to be Luke Maile, who entered Monday’s series opener with a record of 16-12 as a starting catcher, even with the Jays seven games under .500. Yes, he was hitting .115, but isn’t baseball about winning games?
“I’ve got nothing but good things to say about Luke for what he’s done for us,” Gibbons said. “He’s been really, really good behind the plate, not a lot of hits, but a lot of guys don’t get hits when they’re not playing much. But his strength is handling the pitching staff (and) throwing, and I think he’s done a great job with that.”
If the Jays are to rebound in the second half, it will be because of the returning arm of Aaron Sanchez, combined with the continuing excellent work by Marcus Stroman and J.A. Happ and rebounds from Marco Estrada and Francisco Liriano. It won’t be because of Montero.
“You don’t always get what you want, but the attitude (towards winning) has to be there,” Martin said, in discussing what will turn this team’s fortunes.
“Without the attitude and the will and those things that you can’t really measure, those are the things that are most important.
“Attitude, willpower, persistence and grit, those are the things that separate one team from another, not necessarily the individuals and the talent. Everybody has talent, but that no-quit attitude. It’s tough to beat somebody that never quits.”
After being a part of the Cubs’ World Series win, Montero famously took time out to criticize manager Joe Maddon for the way he was utilized all season. The two men had dinner in the off-season and talked it through. Then came last week’s incident.
Montero, in nine seasons with the Diamondbacks and three more with the Cubs, has hit .260 with 124 home runs and a .758 OPS. He was once on the Jays’ radar as a free agent following the 2014 season, before Martin signed with Toronto.
One roster solution for Gibbons, who may not have a firm grasp on how best to utilize the new guy, might be to have Martin spend more time in the infield, especially at second base where the loss of Devon Travis has meant a softhitting platoon with Darwin Barney and Ryan Goins. Martin was asked about playing second base.
“One of the things in my career is that I made myself into a good catcher and I think it’s taken away a lot of my chances to play other positions,” Martin began. “I can’t just play other positions, I feel like I can play other positions at a really high level. I just haven’t gotten the opportunity at the major-league level because I’ve been good behind the plate. But I definitely know you can put me anywhere on the field and I can play that position. I just haven’t had the opportunity.” To make room on the 40-man roster, the Jays moved outfielder Darrell Ceciliani to the 60-day disabled list. The Montero era begins Tuesday.