Miguel Montero, Retired


Date of Birth: 7/9/1983
Birthplace: Caracas, Venezuela

Miguel Montero, retired catcher, was first signed by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001. He played in their minor league system from 2002 through 2006, playing in just 6 games with the Diamondbacks in 2006.

In 2007 and 2008, Montero shared catching duties with Chris Snyder. He played in 84 games in 2007 and 70 games in 2008. The following season, he played in 128 games and he batted a career high of .294. In 2009, he had 125 hits, 30 doubles, 16 home runs, and 59 RBIs.

Montero's best seasons were the 2011 and 2012 ones. Both seasons he had a career high in hits with 139 each year. In 2011, he also had career highs in doubles with 36 and home runs with 18. The following year, he had a career high 88 RBIs.

Montero also had excellent fielding statistics in both 2011 and 2012. In 2011, he made 908 putouts and 11 errors with a .989 fielding percentage and in 2012, he made 1,008 putouts and 9 errors with a .992 fielding percentage. He caught players trying to steal 40% of the time in 2011 and 42.1% of the time in 2012.

In 2013, Montero batted just .230 with 95 hits and 14 doubles in 116 games. As a catcher, he made 823 putouts and 5 errors with a .994 fielding percentage. He caught players trying to steal 32.6% of the time. He finished the 2014 season with 119 hits, 23 doubles, 72 RBIs, and a .243 batting average in 136 games.

On December 9, 2014, Montero was traded to the Chicago Cubs. He finished the 2015 season with 86 hits, 15 home runs, 53 RBIs, and a .248 batting average in 113 games. As a catcher in 109 games, he made 55 assists, 820 putouts, and 12 errors. He caught players trying to steal 20.2% of the time and he had a .986 fielding percentage. In 21 at-bats in 8 postseason games, he had 2 hits, 1 RBI, 10 strikeouts, and 4 walks.

Montero batted .216 in 86 games with the Cubs in 2016. He finished the season with 52 hits and 33 RBIs. Defensively, as the Cubs' catcher in 71 games, he made 37 assists, 550 putouts, and 7 errors. He had a .988 fielding percentage and he caught players trying to steal just 10.6% of the time. In 12 postseason at-bats in 9 games, he had 2 hits, including a home run, and 5 RBIs.

The Cubs traded Montero to the Toronto Blue Jays on July 3, 2017. He finished the 2017 season with 40 hits and a .216 batting average in 44 games with the Cubs and 32 games with the Blue Jays. Defensively, he caught 56 games and played 1 game at first base. He also pitched in 1 game.

Montero became a free agent on November 2, 2017. He signed a minor league contract with the Washington Nationals on February 1, 2018. After just four games in 2018, he was designated for assignment on April 11th. Two days later, he became a free agent.

Montero retired in December, 2018.

Career batting statistics for Montero through 2018 include:

  • 1,185 games played
  • 973 hits
  • 197 doubles
  • 126 home runs
  • 550 RBIs
  • 881 strikeouts to 446 walks
  • .256 batting average

Career fielding statistics for Montero as a catcher through 2018 include:

  • 1,077 games played
  • 560 assists
  • 7,516 putouts
  • 84 errors
  • .262 caught stealing percentage
  • .990 fielding percentage

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Miguel Montero
ESPN - Miguel Montero