Portsmouth’s Mike Montville praises Red Sox after he’s let go
One day after Mike Montville was told he was one of the four coaches in the Boston Red Sox system that was not being asked to return for the 2024 season, the Portsmouth High School graduate had nothing but positive things to say about the four seasons he spent with the organization he cheered for as a child.
“I am super grateful for the opportunity the Red Sox gave me,” Montville said during a layover at the Charlotte, North Carolina, airport en route to Florida. He spent the last three seasons as assistant hitting coach for Triple-A Worcester.
“I leave with so many incredible experiences and knowledge, and most importantly, relationships. I coached in the Arizona Fall League with some of the best prospects in baseball, and I've had two major league spring trainings under my belt. At some point, I've dealt with almost every single person on that big league roster."
Montville, along with Red Sox pitching coach Dave Bush, third base coach Carlos Febles and Triple-A pitching coach Paul Abbott, will not be back next season. Montville was part of the Portsmouth program's 89-game win streak and was twice named New Hampshire Gatorade Player of the Year.
Montville, who helped lead Portsmouth High School to Division II state championships in 2008, 2009 and 2010, was hired in January 2020 to work with the Red Sox' Gulf Coast (Rookie) League affiliate before COVID cancelled the minor league season. He was then promoted to Worcester the following January and spent the past three seasons with the WooSox.
“All they really said was there's some different philosophy changes they're making," Montville said. "They have a new leadership, not only for player development as a whole, but also the hitting department."
However, Montville left the door open about a possible return to the Red Sox organization at some point down the road.
“I would love to,” he said. “I could see myself going back to the Red Sox. I don't know what role, what capacity, but my goal is to coach at Fenway. I spent a week up there (in 2022), and that's something I'd like to do full-time. For what the Red Sox are doing right now in the minor leagues there needed to be a change. That's OK. That's baseball.”
Montville expects to have new job by 2024 Spring Training
Montville flew to Sarasota, Florida on Tuesday afternoon to meet with the Baltimore Orioles about a potential position. He also has had multiple conversations with the Atlanta Braves.
In what role do the Orioles or Braves see with Montville?
“Everything is pretty much in the air right now,” Montville said. “The Braves and the Orioles have shown the most interest, which is a good thing because they are two of the better teams in baseball right now.”
Montville said he has had up to eight people from the Red Sox and other people in the baseball world reach out to other major league teams on his behalf. He has spoken with the Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs this week.
“Everything's starting to happen now,” Montville said. “We'll see what happens. I think I am going to have some options, and I am really excited about some of them. At the end of the day, this is part of sports. I got into this job understanding the fact that things could change at any point. I didn't take this personally at all. I came out of this feeling really good.
"Obviously, I love the Red Sox, that's where I wanted to be, that's the organization that has been the most important to me, the one I grew up watching," Montville continued. "But you know, that's part of the game when you get into professional sports, and you have to be able to handle it. You have to learn from it, and you have to be able to figure out what you're going to do next.”
Montville said he would be surprised if he wasn't with another professional organization come spring training this coming February.
“Based on the amount of interest from (the Orioles and Braves) I've garnered from these organizations so far, I wouldn't be surprised," Montville said. "But again, I'm realistic, and anything can happen. I feel good about everything right now.”
Receives 'really good feedback' from players and Red Sox manager Alex Cora
Despite Montville not returning next season, he got a “ton of really good feedback from players throughout the Red Sox organization.
“I had a lot of players up there (in Boston) who were super supportive,” Montville continued. “They said a lot of good things, and they really had my back on a lot of stuff. To me, I came out of (meeting about not returning) feeling better than feeling worse about myself. A lot of people told me I made a difference. Players told me how much they loved me, and members of the staff calling me and telling me how important I was to the players. Honestly, it was humbling.”
One person who reached out to Montville and told him that he made a difference with the players was Red Sox manager Alex Cora, he said.
“He called me and told me the players loved me,” Montville said. “To hear your big league manager say you made a difference at the major league level the past three years, and offered me a reference, it meant a lot. It was really cool. Sometimes decisions are made, and you move on.”