Yankees' Jordan Montgomery getting by on little run support

TORONTO — If Jordan Montgomery is frustrated with the lack of run support that has plagued him now for well over a year, the lefthander is hiding it remarkably well.

Montgomery did what has become the usual for him Monday night in the Yankees’ 3-2 series-opening victory over the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre: kept the opposition in check during his outing, in this case five innings in which he allowed two runs and six hits over five innings in which he did not walk a batter and struck out five.

The Yankees offense, naturally, did its usual as well — at least insofar as when Montgomery is pitching. Meaning, not a heck of a lot.

Indeed, the ultimate slump inducer for the Yankees’ offense — even when it’s going as well as it has during the 10-game winning streak the club took into Tuesday’s game — seems to be putting Montgomery on the mound.

The numbers are almost a statistical improbability at this point.

Counting Monday night, Montgomery has received six total runs of support in his five starts this season in which he’s 0-1 but with a 2.88 ERA.

The 29-year-old, the Yankees’ fourth-round pick in the 2014 draft who debuted in 2017 (he finished sixth in AL Rookie of the Year voting), has been given three or fewer runs of support in 30 of his last 35 starts since the start of 2021, including two or fewer runs in 22 of those starts.

Montgomery, 6-8 with a 3.70 ERA in the stretch, has more than done his part in that time, allowing three runs or fewer in 29 of his starts since the start of the 2021 season. His 29 starts with three runs or fewer allowed since the beginning of last season are the third-most such starts in the AL in that span.

So it goes without saying Montgomery is used to being asked about not getting much in the way of offense when he’s pitching, and he was again Monday.

“I think it would be pretty selfish for me to think like that,” he said of perhaps getting at least a little “frustrated” at times. “I’m out there trying my best, they’re out there trying their best, playing great defense.”

Montgomery then highlighted Giancarlo Stanton, who took an extra-base hit away from Matt Chapman with a leaping catch against the rightfield wall in the second inning, and shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who enjoyed yet another standout game in the field.

“Stanton made a great play, a lot of ground ball [plays] by Izzy that were not easy plays,” Montgomery said. “I’m just trying to go out there and throw strikes and keep us in it.”

The recently retired CC Sabathia gave similar answers during his Yankees’ tenure when he lacked run support, almost always talking about his defense and saying some form of, “I just need to throw better pitches.”

Montgomery, not surprisingly, spent a lot of his time in the Yankees clubhouse talking with Sabathia when they were teammates.

“He’s been great. He does a really good job of competing,” Aaron Boone said of Montgomery shrugging off the offensive issues when he starts. “And even when he at times gets emotional or is frustrated at himself, and he’s very hard on himself and expects a lot, he’s able to navigate through that. He does just kind of put the blinders on, whether he’s had a great inning or whether he struggled through an inning, he does a good job of just going out there and continuing to compete.”

And win. Well, at least the Yankees have been with regularity, Montgomery’s primary focus.

“We’re playing really good baseball,” Montgomery said. “We’re doing what it takes to win — playing good defense, situational hitting. It’s nice to win close games…it’s nice to blow them out too, but the close games are the one that sometimes can get away from you.”

More often than not, when Montgomery’s on the mound that hasn’t been the case. And if there’s a reason he looks so relaxed in those close games it’s likely because he’s gotten plenty of experience.