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Anaheim, Calif. — Think about the carousel Keider Montero has been on this season.
He didn’t make the Opening Day roster, even though he was clearly deserving of one of the 13 spots on the pitching staff. But the Tigers preferred to keep him stretched out as a starting pitcher, rather than start his season in the bullpen.
That proved to be good foresight. After an early rash of injuries in the rotation, Montero ended up saving the Tigers’ bacon by making 13 starts, five quality starts, between April 5 and June 11.
Then, as Troy Melton, Tarik Skubal and Jack Flaherty all returned to the rotation, Montero was shifted to the bullpen. And not just as a multi-inning filler. He’s become a late-inning weapon.
But again, maybe as soon as this week, he could be inserted back into the rotation as the Tigers consider temporarily deploying a six-man rotation.
It’s a lot to ask and there aren’t many relievers versatile enough to handle it. But the truth is, Montero seems to love it.
“Regardless of the situation, whether I’m starting or relieving, my mindset is always the same,” he said through interpreter Carlos Guillen. “Enjoy the game, do my best, give 100% of myself and help the team win. It’s really not that big a change for me.”
His 3⅓-inning win Friday night against the Angels was revelatory on a couple of levels. One, when Montero is available to pitch, he’s going to pitch in leverage.
Manager AJ Hinch had a fully rested bullpen, including back-end relievers Kyle Finnegan and Kenley Jansen, and not once, not even when the Angels put the first two runners on in the bottom of the ninth, did he have anyone warming.
“Given the way he was pitching, he had his rhythm, he was punching out everybody, I felt he earned it,” Hinch said. “It wasn’t a knock on anything that’s going on in the pen or the options we do have. It was about using his pitches at the right time and when he was feeling the way he was feeling, I thought it was the right call for us.”
It was. Montero made it so. He bowed his neck and, with the help of a couple of stellar defensive plays by Kevin McGonigle and Spencer Torkelson, he stranded the tying and winning runs at third and second base.
“I am grateful for the trust he has in me and the trust he has in my pitches,” Montero said.
Secondly, these bullpen stints have exposed the bulldog side of Montero’s makeup. There’s more going on here than the infectious smile and the firm four-seam fastballs, sinkers and high-rpm spin. As he showed in the playoffs last fall when he earned his first big-league save in Game 1 of the ALDS, he truly seems to revel in those intense moments.
“No way are they going to score a run,” Montero said, repeating his mantra. “There’s no chance I’m going to blow the lead. They’re not going to score. The guys gave me the support scoring two runs (in the top of the ninth) so we can get this win. I am going to do my best to close it out.”
For a guy who was groomed to be a starter since he joined the system from Venezuela as a 16-year-old, it’s almost eerie how calm and unaffected he’s been in high-leverage spots. He explained why that might be.
“Since I was a kid, I always played infield and pitched,” he said. “My coach back in the day, god rest his soul in peace, when I was 10 or 11 years old, he always put me in the infield. But he would always bring me in to pitch in the tough situations late in games, tight games, in the semifinals and finals.
“I got used to that. I always wanted to save a game in the big leagues. I kind of like those situations.”
This is a different type of hybrid reliever. It’s a reliable starter and multi-inning leverage reliever in one package. It presents a very useful and intriguing tool for Hinch and pitching coach Chris Fetter to use, either every third day out of the bullpen or every fifth or sixth day in the rotation.
“Keider has been the one that triggered a little different role for a lot of different guys,” Hinch said on Saturday. “And that’s a compliment to him. It’s not a knock on anybody. But I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t pay attention to how well he’s throwing the ball.”
Montero is here for all of it.
“I am grateful that they give me a chance to pitch,” he said. “No matter what the situation is.”
[email protected]
@cmccosky
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Keider Montero unleashing inner bulldog in bullpen role with Tigers
Continue reading...
He didn’t make the Opening Day roster, even though he was clearly deserving of one of the 13 spots on the pitching staff. But the Tigers preferred to keep him stretched out as a starting pitcher, rather than start his season in the bullpen.
That proved to be good foresight. After an early rash of injuries in the rotation, Montero ended up saving the Tigers’ bacon by making 13 starts, five quality starts, between April 5 and June 11.
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Then, as Troy Melton, Tarik Skubal and Jack Flaherty all returned to the rotation, Montero was shifted to the bullpen. And not just as a multi-inning filler. He’s become a late-inning weapon.
But again, maybe as soon as this week, he could be inserted back into the rotation as the Tigers consider temporarily deploying a six-man rotation.
It’s a lot to ask and there aren’t many relievers versatile enough to handle it. But the truth is, Montero seems to love it.
“Regardless of the situation, whether I’m starting or relieving, my mindset is always the same,” he said through interpreter Carlos Guillen. “Enjoy the game, do my best, give 100% of myself and help the team win. It’s really not that big a change for me.”
His 3⅓-inning win Friday night against the Angels was revelatory on a couple of levels. One, when Montero is available to pitch, he’s going to pitch in leverage.
Manager AJ Hinch had a fully rested bullpen, including back-end relievers Kyle Finnegan and Kenley Jansen, and not once, not even when the Angels put the first two runners on in the bottom of the ninth, did he have anyone warming.
“Given the way he was pitching, he had his rhythm, he was punching out everybody, I felt he earned it,” Hinch said. “It wasn’t a knock on anything that’s going on in the pen or the options we do have. It was about using his pitches at the right time and when he was feeling the way he was feeling, I thought it was the right call for us.”
It was. Montero made it so. He bowed his neck and, with the help of a couple of stellar defensive plays by Kevin McGonigle and Spencer Torkelson, he stranded the tying and winning runs at third and second base.
“I am grateful for the trust he has in me and the trust he has in my pitches,” Montero said.
Secondly, these bullpen stints have exposed the bulldog side of Montero’s makeup. There’s more going on here than the infectious smile and the firm four-seam fastballs, sinkers and high-rpm spin. As he showed in the playoffs last fall when he earned his first big-league save in Game 1 of the ALDS, he truly seems to revel in those intense moments.
“No way are they going to score a run,” Montero said, repeating his mantra. “There’s no chance I’m going to blow the lead. They’re not going to score. The guys gave me the support scoring two runs (in the top of the ninth) so we can get this win. I am going to do my best to close it out.”
For a guy who was groomed to be a starter since he joined the system from Venezuela as a 16-year-old, it’s almost eerie how calm and unaffected he’s been in high-leverage spots. He explained why that might be.
“Since I was a kid, I always played infield and pitched,” he said. “My coach back in the day, god rest his soul in peace, when I was 10 or 11 years old, he always put me in the infield. But he would always bring me in to pitch in the tough situations late in games, tight games, in the semifinals and finals.
“I got used to that. I always wanted to save a game in the big leagues. I kind of like those situations.”
This is a different type of hybrid reliever. It’s a reliable starter and multi-inning leverage reliever in one package. It presents a very useful and intriguing tool for Hinch and pitching coach Chris Fetter to use, either every third day out of the bullpen or every fifth or sixth day in the rotation.
“Keider has been the one that triggered a little different role for a lot of different guys,” Hinch said on Saturday. “And that’s a compliment to him. It’s not a knock on anybody. But I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t pay attention to how well he’s throwing the ball.”
Montero is here for all of it.
“I am grateful that they give me a chance to pitch,” he said. “No matter what the situation is.”
[email protected]
@cmccosky
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Keider Montero unleashing inner bulldog in bullpen role with Tigers
Continue reading...
