Rafael Montero, once lauded as one of the Mets’ best pitching prospects, has struggled to stay on the field due to injuries these last couple of seasons. His mechanics have suffered as well due to a possible lack of confidence. That hit to the player’s mental make-up possibly took a plunge after not cracking the starting rotation out of spring training in the previous season.
Frank Viola, spoke with Tim Rohan of the New York Times as he tried to delve into that possible issues that Montero has encountered in the time has spent in Las Vegas with the 51’s.
“He had never been through something like that,” Viola said. “It was like a hurricane: it all hit him at once. The next thing you know, he’s messed up in the head a little bit. Then the next thing you know, he’s got a sore shoulder.”
Last April, Montero was called up to make a spot start against the Marlins, allowing three runs on five hits in 5.2 innings while walking one and striking out six. After he exited he complained of discomfort in his shoulder, and instead of heading back to Las Vegas he landed on the disabled list. The team could not figure out what was wrong as team doctor’s could not find any signs of injury, but Montero insisted there was something wrong.
“It was just a little something that really bothered me,” Montero said through an interpreter. “Then it got to bothering me a lot, just because it wouldn’t go away.”
Montero comes into spring training this year with something to prove as he tries to regain the trust of the front office. Manager Terry Collins spoke to the right-hander on Monday, to try and boost his confidence heading into the new season. He told him that the Mets wouldn’t have re-signed Bartolo Colon had he lived up to his expectations and talents.
“You should have been the guy,” Collins told him. “Get your act together. We haven’t forgotten about you. We still want you.”
Rafael Montero will look to right the ship for himself this year and get back into the swing of things. A strong spring with the major league club could go a long way for not only Montero’s confidence, but his standing in the organization.
