MONTAS HAD ARM ISSUE BEFORE DEAL

Frankie Montas said Wednesday his shoulder wasn’t fully healthy when he was acquired by the New York Yankees at the trade deadline last season, but the righthanded starter said he tried to “push through” after joining his new team.

Montas went 1-3 with a 6.35 ERA in eight starts last season after being obtained from Oakland. He is recovering from shoulder surgery that will keep him from throwing until at least late May.

“I was trying to push through,” Montas told reporters in his first comments since surgery two weeks earlier. “I got traded to a new team and wanted to show what I could do. Things didn’t go the way I was expecting.”

The Yankees placed Montas on the injured list in late September after his second cortisone injection of the year, knocking him out of the AL Division Series. He was on the roster for the AL Championship Series, but pitched only one inning in the opener against Houston.

Montas said he kept experiencing discomfort when trying to begin a throwing program during the offseason. While he tried to avoid surgery, he said that was the best option, and that he is confident that he will pitch this season for the Yankees.

“Trust me, I’m one of the guys that wants to be out there pitching right now and showing what I can do,” he said. “But things didn’t work out that way, so just trying to rehab and come back so I can help with whatever they want me to do.”

New York acquired Montas and reliever Lou Trivino from the Athletics on Aug. 1 for four prospects.

Dealing deGrom

Two-time NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom is closer to his first game action with the Texas Rangers, after bringing some heat when throwing to hitters for the first time in Surprise, Ariz.

The Rangers held deGrom out of their first scheduled workout three weeks ago after he reported tightness in his left side. They are still being cautious, but the right-hander has been throwing regularly, and on Wednesday was at 98-99 mph with his fastball. He hit 100 mph on the last of his 35 pitches during the equivalent of two innings during BP.

“Feel really good. It’s a big step facing hitters,” deGrom said.

Asked if he felt he would be ready for opening day, deGrom said, “I think so, yeah.”

Manager Bruce Bochy had said before the workout that he felt deGrom had turned a corner in his season preparation.

Texas signed deGrom to a $185 million, five-year contract in December. The 34-year-old deGrom spent the first nine years of his bigleague career with the New York Mets, but injuries limited him to 1561⁄3 innings in 26 starts over the past two seasons.

Late arrival

Gregory Soto, the hard-throwing lefty reliever the Phillies acquired in a January trade with Detroit, finally reported Wednesday to Tigers camp in Clearwater, Fla.

Soto had missed the first three weeks of camp while dealing with visa issues at home in the Dominican Republic. Because of the delay getting to spring training, Soto won’t be going to the WBC. He had been throwing at the Phillies’ academy in the Dominican Republic.

The two-time All-Star had 30 saves and a 3.28 ERA in 64 appearances for the Tigers last season. His fastball averaged 98.7 mph, leading major league left-handers.