Montero wants to start, show he can catch
TAMPA, Fla. - Jesus Montero entered the offseason thinking he'd have a chance this spring to compete for the starting catcher's job.
Then the Yankees signed Russell Martin.
Montero's reaction?
"That made me work really hard; harder, harder and harder every day to try and make the team," the touted prospect said Tuesday after hitting at the team's minor-league complex.
And while general manager Brian Cashman said in December that Martin, if healthy, would start, the 21-year-old Montero set the bar high in spring training. "I want to be behind the plate," Montero said. "I want to show everybody that I can catch with the Yankees."
Montero's work at the plate has never been questioned - after a slow start at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre he hit .289 with 21 home runs and 75 RBIs and had a .517 slugging percentage - but his defense still is. Doubts about that, and the uncertainty whether another one of the organization's top catching prospects, Austin Romine, is ready, played a role in Cashman signing Martin in December.
"Instead of sink or swim, it's now a situation where we can ease them in and feel really comfortable and confident that Russell Martin will be an asset for us behind the plate," Cashman said shortly after Martin signed. "The rest of these young catchers that we have coming can take the necessary steps, and while they take them, we're not in a situation where we have to rely on them solely whether they're ready or not. We think they are, but now we're protected if they're not."
Montero believes he made strides defensively last season but acknowledged, "I have to work harder this year to show them I can catch."
Montero didn't always put that work in. He came into last spring overweight and he was benched in early May for lack of hustle. This year Montero looks trimmer, and he continually used some form of "hard work" while talking with reporters.
"I want to be in the big leagues this year," said Montero, who arrived here two weeks ago. "I've spent more time here in the cage. I want to be with the team this year."
Montero is often mentioned as a trade chip but hopes to stay. "I want to stay with the Yankees all my career," said Montero, included in the Cliff Lee trade with the Mariners that fell through last summer. "But they're going to decide what they're going to do. I just try to do my best on the field and help them win. That's it."
Notes & quotes:
Alfredo Aceves, who appeared in just 10 games last season because of a back injury and was non-tendered, signed a one-year deal with the Red Sox for $650,000 ($200,000 guaranteed), according to The Boston Globe.