It’s hard to get people out when the batter knows what the pitcher is throwing.
Such was the case with Rafael Montero who, according to Kristie Ackert of the Daily News, was tipping his pitches both last season and into camp this spring.
“Horribly,” Dan Warthen told Ackert. “That’s pretty much all we’ve worked on with him.”
It’s an interesting development, considering Montero also couldn’t throw strikes consistently last year, either. But it also helps explain why Montero might have been kept out of games early in camp so to be able to work on this issue.
Nevertheless, it happens a lot with young pitchers who come up to the big leagues, especially when these guys throw their off-speed pitches, as was the case with Montero, according to Ackert. Either their delivery is different, they fiddle with the ball a tad longer than they do on their fastball before throwing it, they hold their glove differently as they try and grip the ball. or something so mundane it’s impossible for most to see.
Montero has clearly straightened this out. Over his last three appearances, Montero has allowed only one run on seven hits with 12 strikeouts and no walks in 13 2/3 innings. He’s going to start the year in the bullpen, but there’s no question his performance this spring warrants a rotation spot.
Perhaps that will come sooner rather than later, depending on how the Mets handle the returns of Vic Black and Bobby Parnell later this month.
Just Mets 