Lazaro Montes homers in major league debut

Montes put the Mariners on the board in the fourth inning with an absolute blast off Cal Quantrill for a three-run homer. It came off the bat at 116.1 mph and traveled a majestic 474 feet for his second career homer. The 21-year-old slugger is starting in a strong-side platoon and is worth streaming for power in deeper leagues against right-handed pitching.

Montes is back in Seattle’s lineup after coming off the bench during two consecutive games over the weekend due to a left hip injury that he suffered on a collision with the right-center field wall last Friday. The 21-year-old top prospect is at DH and hitting eighth. He’s gone 3-for-14 with one homer and three RBI in five games since being called up last week.

Montes was able to come off the bench as a DH tonight after leaving Friday’s game with hip soreness. He probably won’t start Sunday with the Mariners facing another lefty, but he should again be available.

Montes underwent precautionary X-rays that came back negative for any fractures after crashing into the right-center field wall during Friday’s contest against the Athletics. The 21-year-old rookie slugger, who is hitting .273 (3-for-11) with one homer and three RBI in three games since being called up earlier this week, appears to have avoided serious injury, which is the most encouraging news here. He’s likely to receive some additional time off to rest and recover this weekend.

Montes injured the hip while trying to make a play on Zack Gelof’s triple. The 21-year-old will likely undergo testing to determine the severity, but there’s a good chance he’ll miss Saturday’s game. Taylor Ward has taken over in the outfield.

Montes came up just short of making a spectacular catch against the wall, and while he was able to continue immediately after, the Mariners took precaution and took the outfielder out a few batters later. The specifics of the injury for the 21-year-old should be available soon.

Despite going 2-for-4 with a walk and a home run on Tuesday, Montes will sit against a left-handed pitcher. It’s not a surprise, but is good confirmation that he is going to be in a strong-side platoon role. Taylor Ward will play right field and Dominic Canzone will DH with Cal Raleigh also getting a day off.

Montes will make his big-league debut at Fenway Park with Seattle trying to remain within shouting distance of a Wild Card playoff spot. The power-hitting 21-year-old boasts impressive raw power, but he’s going to need to show that he can make enough consistent contact at the highest level to be an impact fantasy contributor. He’s a bit of an outlier with most organizations starting to prioritizing hitters that make strong swing decisions over free swingers.

Montes should play a lot of right field against righties for the Mariners after hitting .249/.369/.558 with 38 homers between Double- and Triple-A. He’ll strike out a bunch, and he’s probably not going to be a quality mixed-league guy right away. Still, he should be an upgrade from this current version of Taylor Ward if the Mariners let that happen.

He’ll officially be added when rosters expand Tuesday, says Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times. The 21-year-old Montes had 38 homers between Double- and Triple-A, though they came with a .243 average and a 31 percent strikeout rate. One imagines he’ll take time away from Taylor Ward, who has hit just .113/.225/.145 in his 18 games for the Mariners. Montes is a left-handed hitter, so a platoon with Ward might be an option. Since he’s not going to start against lefties and he’ll be hitting in a tough environment, Montes probably isn’t worth an immediate pickup in shallow leagues.