Rafael

Montero

Montero becomes the latest addition to Detroit’s bullpen overhaul at the trade deadline after making 39 appearances this season between the Braves and Astros. The well-traveled 34-year-old has made 360 appearances in the big leagues since 2014.

Asked to finish off a 10-4 game, Montero failed to retire any of the four batters he faced tonight. Fortunately, Iglesias had no such issue, getting all three batters he faced to fly out. The first of those was a sac fly, but that was hardly Iglesias’s problem. He’s up to 12 saves ahead of a very likely deadline deal that could see him become a setup man for a contender.

Montero made Houston’s season-opening bullpen as a non-roster invitee, but finds himself on the move to Atlanta after making just three relief appearances. The 34-year-old veteran righty provides the Braves with some experienced middle relief depth for next to nothing since the Astros are covering the majority of his $11.5 million salary.

Rodgers will serve as the primary second baseman while Jose Altuve is out in left field; however, Mauricio Dubon will mix in as well. Montero, Okert, and Gusto will begin the year in the bullpen.

No team was interested in picking up Montero’s $11.5 million salary for 2025, and he wasn’t about to forfeit it either, so he’ll head to Triple-A Sugar Land for now. The best-case scenario outcome for both sides here would be Montero turning things around to the point that he can return to Houston and make an impact in middle relief somewhere down the line.

The 33-year-old right-hander was in the second season of a three-year, $34.5 million contract with the Astros, so it’s highly unlikely that anyone claims him off of waivers and assumes the remainder of the deal. Montero has struggled out of the Astros’ bullpen this season, registering a 4.70 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and a 23/19 K/BB ratio over 38 1/3 innings in his 41 appearances.

Montero came in during the seventh inning and allowed a walk and then a double as Sugar Land scored the go-ahead run. The 33-year-old reliever allowed two or more hits in three of his six appearances during spring camp and has posted a 9.64 ERA. His velocity on his fastball has decreased and it appears he’s looks like he won’t offer much from a fantasy perspective in 2024.

Montero had a fine April, but he’s allowed 13 runs in 7 2/3 innings this month, leaving him with a 7.32 ERA for the year. He probably won’t be much of a threat for holds again until he strings some quality outings together.

To call this an epic meltdown might be an understatement. Montero was summoned to guard a five-run lead in the eighth inning and combined with fellow reliever Ryne Stanek to allow seven runs to cross the plate with two outs in the frame. Montero loaded the bases before serving up a three-run double to J.P. Crawford that chased him from the contest. Stanek came on to allow four additional runs to cross the plate before finally ending the disastrous frame.

Both Montero and closer Ryan Pressly worked in Thursday’s loss to the White Sox, but Montero only threw 10 pitches in his inning of work while Pressly threw 21 while giving up a pair of runs in the ninth inning. Astros’ skipper didn’t want to go back to Pressly on a back-to-back so early in the season, so instead it opened the door for Montero to vulture an early-season save. He did allow a one-out single to Tim Anderson, but battled back to strike out Luis Robert and then got Andrew Benintendi to fly out to right to end the ballgame. Pressly is still the closer here, but Montero is a capable fill-in who will pick up the occasional save.