Mike

Montgomery

Montgomery hasn’t appeared in the big leagues with the Royals during the truncated 2020 season. He’ll look to work himself back into game form at the minor league level where he’ll function as excess bullpen depth for the Dodgers.

Montgomery last appeared in the majors with the Royals during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. He spent last season in the Mets’ minor league system after pitching for the Samsung Lions of the Korea Baseball Organization back in 2021.

Montgomery pitched for the Samsung Lions of the Korea Baseball Organization last season. The southpaw last appeared in the major leagues in 2020 with the Royals but only tossed 5 1/3 innings with three earned runs. Montgomery will act as minor league depth for the Mets.

The deal is expected to be finalized on Tuesday. Naver Sports in South Korea previously reported that a deal was likely. Montgomery, 31, recently used the opt-out clause in his minor league contract with the Yankees are posting a 7.56 ERA and 1.68 WHIP over 16 2/3 innings in Triple-A.

That could be his next step after opting out of his minor league contract with the Yankees. Ben Lively is out with a shoulder injury, so it’s expected that Montgomery would take his spot on the Lions’ roster. KBO teams are allowed to use two roster spots for foreign pitchers. Montgomery struggled with a a 7.56 ERA and 1.68 WHIP over 16 2/3 innings in Triple-A this season.

The left-hander will be looking to secure a major league deal with another team. Montgomery is unlikely to hold much leverage after posting a 7.56 ERA and 1.68 WHIP over 16 2/3 innings in Triple-A this season.

Montgomery failed to make the Mets as a non-roster invitee but has now managed to catch on with the other New York club. The left-hander doesn’t look to have much of a shot at a major role with the big club, but he’s a nice depth addition.

Montgomery was released by the Mets earlier this week after allowing six runs -- five earned -- over 7 1/3 innings of work in the Grapefruit League. The 32-year-old left-hander has a career 3.84 ERA in the majors.

This counts as at least somewhat of a surprise. Montgomery did struggle mightily in his outing on Sunday, and there was a roster crunch to be sure. That being said, Montgomery has had success in the majors, and it would not be a surprise at all if there’s a market for the 32-year-old southpaw.

Montgomery was pushing hard for a spot in the Mets bullpen, so this outing certainly did him no favors. Before today the left-hander had allowed no runs over 4 2/3 innings, but now has an ERA of 7.11 after this afternoon. After allowing multiple doublers and four runs in the first inning, Montgomery was taken out of the game only to re-enter in the second. The veteran was immediately taken deep by Jesus Aguilar. Montgomery picked a bad time for this blowup outing with time running out for a chance to win a spot on the Opening Day roster. The Mets need to make a decision today on the left-hander, who has an opt-out in his contract.