Call to the pen
Fansided

A look at the #3 overall MLB Draft picks in the 2000s

By Benjamin Chase

May 23, 2017; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria (3) throws the ball to first base for an out against the Los Angeles Angels at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
May 23, 2017; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria (3) throws the ball to first base for an out against the Los Angeles Angels at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Luis Montanez, SS, Chicago Cubs, -1.2 bWAR

As the Cubs found themselves in the midst of a down season among other competitive years, they decided to go for a pick that was completely understandable based on reputation. Montanez had comments comparing him to Alex Rodriguez coming out of high school in Miami, and though he didn’t have the physical build, he offered power, speed, and defensive abilities that would work at short or third.

Instead, Montanez showed that about the only thing he shared with A-Rod was a “z” at the end of their name. After an impressive performance with the Cubs rookie ball team in Arizona, Montanez was rated as the #73 prospect in baseball by Baseball America.

T reality sank in quickly after. His first full season was played at Lansing in the low-A Midwest League, and Montanez struggled to recognize pitches or the zone, leading to a terrible strikeout rate and walk rate, though his raw speed and power were on display at times.

The next two seasons were spent at high-A Daytona in the Florida State League, but instead of taking steps forward, Montanez took a small step forward in 2002’s first year at high-A before taking a step back in 2003 as the team moved him to second base. A similar issue showed up as the Cubs moved him to the outfield with his bat.

A shift happened for Montanez occurred when he was moved to the outfield. He found a defensive home that allowed his natural athleticism to play well, and while he still didn’t have great peripherals, he had better batting averages as he moved quickly as a defensive-focused outfielder.

A move to the Orioles organization as a minor league free agent allowed him to ascend quickly, making his major league debut in 2008 and bouncing between the majors and minors for the next four years with the Orioles and then back with the Cubs as a 5th outfielder. After minor league runs with the Cardinals, Phillies, and Angels over 2012-2013, Montanez was out of baseball at age 31 with a total of 323 plate appearances.

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