Sunday Notes: Jeff Montgomery Tackles a Challenging Career Quiz

Two weeks in the past, Sunday Notes led with David Cone following in Mark Gubicza’s footsteps. Simply as his fellow pitcher-turned-broadcaster had performed, Cone tackled a difficult profession quiz, augmenting his solutions — a few of them appropriate, others amiss — with entertaining anecdotes about batters he confronted alongside the way in which. Right this moment we’ll hear from one other Nineteen Eighties-Nineties hurler who’s now a broadcast analyst: Jeff Montgomery, who performed with Gubicza in Kansas Metropolis, is the Royals’ franchise chief in each appearances (686) and saves 304).

I started by asking the 64-year-old Wellston, Ohio native which batter he confronted probably the most instances.

“I’m going to say both Chili Davis or Kirby Puckett,” guessed Montgomery, naming a pair of gamers who narrowly missed being the right reply. Upon being knowledgeable that it was neither of the 2, the erstwhile nearer contemplated for a number of seconds, solely to throw up his fingers. “You bought me,” he admitted. “Who was it?”

I advised Montgomery that it was Paul Molitor, whom he confronted 30 instances, permitting simply seven hits, all of them singles.

“Oh, Molly. There you go,” responded Montgomery, “Molly was the kind of hitter who was by no means going to be simple. He had the flexibility to essentially wait on pitches. He was mainly bat-to-ball, and his bat-to-ball expertise have been unbelievable. There have been truthfully instances after I thought the pitch was within the catcher’s mitt, and the subsequent factor I knew I used to be watching our proper fielder chasing the ball down the road. Molly’s bat was that quick.

“I believe I did fairly properly in opposition to him,“ Montgomery added. “However I do bear in mind one recreation within the Metrodome. We have been in further innings, it was a bases-loaded state of affairs, and I had him 0-2. I’d thrown Molly a few sliders away, and determined to return in with a fastball. He leaned into it for a walk-off hit-by-pitch.”

Requested who he surrendered probably the most hits to, Montgomery as soon as once more narrowly missed, guessing Cal Ripken Jr. The reply is Puckett, who went 10-for-26.

“Most likely loads of these have been balls that he hit 110 mph, proper up the center on the turf in Minneapolis,” mentioned Montgomery. “The Twins had this fashion of baseball that was like enjoying in a bowling alley. They used that turf to their benefit. Puckett hit some balls that, whereas they didn’t actually undergo me, felt like they went via me. The opposite factor about Puckett is that he might hit a pitch that was neck excessive.”

The batter who took him deep probably the most instances?

“I bear in mind a few of the residence runs in opposition to me, however principally those that have been of the walk-off selection,” mentioned Montgomery, who surrendered 81 gophers in all. “You bought me there, too. Who was it?”

The reply is Juan Gonzalez, Dean Palmer, and Harold Baines, the final of which is Montgomery’s ordinary reply to “Who was probably the most tough hitter you confronted?” Every of the trio had three.

The batter he punched out probably the most instances additionally stumped him.

“I had loads of success in opposition to Joe Carter [2-for-20, six strikeouts], nevertheless it’s most likely not him,” replied Montgomery. “There have been the massive, sturdy residence run hitters like Rob Deer [2-for-14, eights strikeouts] and Pete Incaviglia [1-for-12, five strikeouts]; I believe I had extra success in opposition to these varieties of guys than anyone. However I wouldn’t be capable to let you know which one I had probably the most strikeouts in opposition to.”

Gonzalez — “Ah sure, Johnny Gonzo” — was the righty’s sufferer 9 instances.

The final ever batter he Kd proved to be a simple query.

“It might be Dean Palmer,” Montgomery mentioned with out hesitation. “The explanation I bear in mind him being the final is that I’d introduced my retirement. It was a Saturday on the finish of the 1999 season, and we have been enjoying the Tigers. The following day, I noticed him within the [concourse] outdoors of the clubhouse. He mentioned, ‘Dude, why are you going to retire?’ I advised him that I’d had a nasty 12 months and didn’t assume I might maintain going. He goes, ‘Final evening you threw me the perfect slider I’ve seen all season.’ I’ll always remember that remark. That’s why I do know that Dean Palmer my was final strikeout.”

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RANDOM HITTER-PITCHER MATCHUPS

Bake McBride went 5 for 10 in opposition to Clay Kirby.Gabby Hartnett went 6 for 11 in opposition to Kirby Higbe.Kerby Farrell went 7 for 11 in opposition to Marino Pieretti.Wayne Kirby went 6 for 10 in opposition to Rick Sutcliffe.Kirby Puckett went 9 for 12 in opposition to Mike Birkbeck.

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I generally bankroll non-timely interviews to run in the course of the offseason, and whereas the beginning of spring coaching is my goal cutoff level, a number of often stretch into early weeks of camp. That was the case with Isaac Mattson. What I discovered from my late-summer dialog with the 30-year-old Pittsburgh Pirates reliever is that two of his pitches have a little bit of Vulcan to them. To my shock, one in every of them is his slider.

“One of many largest jumps I took this season got here from working with a buddy of mine that pitches for the Mets, Reed Garrett,” mentioned Mattson, who got here out of the Bucs bullpen 44 instances and put up a 2.45 ERA and a 3.66 FIP over 47-and-two-thirds innings. “He was engaged on slider [during the 2024-2025 offseason] and I sort of adjusted my grip to the one he has.

“I’d at all times sort of held my slider looser,” added the righty, who’d made simply seven big-league appearances previous to final season. “Speaking with Reed, the most important factor was discovering that strain level between my center and ring fingers, the knuckle there. I’m mainly making the Spock signal — that house in between — to create strain. Earlier than, many of the strain was between my thumb, my pointer, and center finger. Shifting that strain level just a little bit towards the middle of my hand and sort of getting my thumb out of the way in which helped cut back carry.”

His different “Vulcan-esque” — that’s how Mattson described it — providing is predictably his changeup. He started throwing it in 2019 when he was within the Baltimore Orioles group, the purpose being to kill spin and get extra depth. His earlier changeup “had extra carry to it, nearly like John Means’s changeup a pair years again.” Mattson advised me that he now presets to his Vulcan with each pitch, explaining that it’s simpler to regulate away from that grip than vice versa.

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Germán Márquez is a Padre now, San Diego having signed the 30-year-old, longtime Colorado Rockies right-hander as a free agent earlier this week. To say that he’s a reclamation challenge could be an understatement. As my colleague Michael Baumann identified after the deal was introduced, Márquez missed many of the 2023 and 2024 seasons on account of a UCL damage, and final 12 months he struggled to the tune of a 3-16 report and a 6.70 ERA.

Craig Stammen was requested about Márquez yesterday morning.

“He threw so much within the offseason, however he’s simply making an attempt to get his toes beneath him in camp,” San Diego’s first-year supervisor advised a small group of reporters. “I do know that [pitching coach] Ruben [Niebla] has been working with him on some particular issues. It’s a chance for them to work on these issues, after which finally take him to a stay batting observe and right into a recreation.”

Following up, I requested Stammen if the work is mechanical, or whether it is extra about pitch sorts.

“The entire above,” replied the 42-year-old pitcher-turned-skipper. “Any time you get on the mound with Reuben, or any of the pitching coaches, they’re checking every part out. It could possibly be stuff within the weight room. It could possibly be stuff within the coaching room. It could possibly be mechanics. May very well be pitch grips. May very well be pitch combine. All that stuff is on the desk, and him being open to doing these varieties of issues might be the primary attribute that he might have.”

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A quiz:

Two quarterbacks who’re within the Professional Soccer Corridor of Fame have been drafted by the identical MLB group out of highschool in the identical 12 months. Who’re they, and which group took them? (A touch: one of many gamers was later drafted by a special MLB group out of school and performed briefly within the minors, whereas the opposite by no means performed baseball professionally.)

The reply will be discovered beneath.

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NEWS NOTES

Invoice Mazeroski, a Corridor of Fame second baseman who performed for the Pittsburgh Pirates 1956-1972, died on Friday at age 89. Thought-about one of many best-ever defenders at his place, “Maz” gained eight Gold Gloves, was an All-Star in seven of his 17 seasons, and — final however not least — hit arguably probably the most well-known residence run in World Collection historical past. The Pittsburgh legends’s ninth-inning blast walked off the New York Yankees in 1960’s epic Recreation 7.

Joe Nossek, an outfielder who performed for 3 groups throughout the 1964-1970 seasons, died on February 12 at age 85. A Cleveland native, Nossek notched 122 hits, together with three residence runs, the final of them off of Indians southpaw “Sudden Sam” McDowell. A coach for a number of groups following his enjoying days, Nossek appeared in six video games and went 4-for-20 with the Minnesota Twins within the 1965 World Collection.

Bobby Henrich, an infielder who performed in 48 video games for the Cincinnati Reds from 1957-1959, died earlier this month at age 87. Utilized primarily as a defensive substitute and pinch-runner, the Lawrence, Kansas native went 2-for-16 on the plate and scored 13 runs.

A reminder that this 12 months’s SABR Analytics Convention is being held at Arizona State College’s downtown Phoenix campus from February 27-March 1. The schedule, together with the spectacular array of featured audio system, will be discovered right here.

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The reply to the quiz is John Elway and Dan Marino, each of whom have been drafted by the Kansas Metropolis Royals in 1979. Marino, a fourth-round decide, opted to attend the College of Pittsburgh and caught with soccer. Elway, an 18th-round decide, went to Stanford, then went to play short-season ball within the New York Yankees system in 1982 after being drafted out of school.

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Bryce Miller makes his dwelling throwing a baseball, which is one thing he does very properly when wholesome. Elbow woes restricted his effectiveness final season — in addition they landed him on the shelf on two events — however a 12 months prior, the Seattle Mariners right-hander put up a 2.94 ERA and a 3.58 FIP over 180-and-a-third frames.

What if the native Texan have been a Winter Olympics athlete quite than a baseball participant? Which occasion would he be excelling in?

“Winter Olympics? I noticed one thing final evening,” Miller advised me on Friday. “I believe it was known as mountaineering. It’s the primary time they’ve performed it, and all you do is run up a hill with skis on, then you definitely ski down. It seemed extraordinarily simple.”

Wait, it seems simple to go uphill on skis?

“They’ve like grips on them,” Miller replied with a smile. “They simply ran up the hill, then they went down. That’ s a simple Gold Medal for me. Give me per week.”

Truthful sufficient. Any occasions you wouldn’t even need to attmept?

“I can’t ice skate,” mentioned Miller. “So, determine skating wouldn’t be any good. I additionally don’t like to bounce. Dancing and skating are two of the issues I don’t like, so determine skating could be out.”

What about ski leaping?

“I’d try this,” he replied. “I don’t know concerning the one the place I’d have to do a flip. However the flying squirrel one, I might try this.”

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I requested 20-year-old Mariners pitching prospect Ryan Sloan the identical set of questions.

“Most likely hockey,” mentioned the Elmhurst, Illinois native, who’s ranked twentieth on our recently-released 2026 Prime 100 Prospects listing. “I didn’t play hockey — I can barely skate — however that may be fairly cool. I’ll go to a recreation each on occasion.”

The 6-foot-5, 200-pound hurler went on to call determine skating because the occasion he’d be least more likely to even attempt. “Not an opportunity,” he advised me. “I don’t assume I’ve the construct for it.” As for ski leaping, Sloan matched Miller within the bravery division: “I wouldn’t be against it.”

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A random obscure former participant snapshot:

Scott Livingstone had a career-best season with the San Diego Padres in 1995. Taking part in for first-year supervisor Bruce Bochy, the left-handed-hitting nook infielder slashed .337/.380/.490 with a 133 wRC+ over 213 plate appearances. 4 years earlier, he had what arguably stands as his most memorable recreation. Making his MLB debut with the Detroit Tigers on July 19, 1991, Livingston went 3-for-5 with a stroll and 4 runs scored in a 17-0 shellacking of the Kansas Metropolis Royals.

In 1987, the Dallas native had performed for a star-studded Crew USA squad that included Jim Abbott, Chris Carpenter, Tino Martinez, Gregg Olson, and Scott Servais. The next 12 months, Livingston was drafted within the second spherical by the Tigers, with whom he went on to play for three-plus seasons earlier than being traded to the Padres, after which by San Diego to St. Louis in a 1997 deal that included Danny Jackson, Phil Plantier, Mark Sweeney, and Fernando Valenzuela.

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LINKS YOU’LL LIKE

Nick Castellanos has no regrets about how his time in Philadelphia ended, though he did take away classes from the rocky end. Julian McWilliams has the story at CBS Sports activities.

Brewer Fanatic’s Michael Trzinski seemed again at how the Seattle Pilots grew to become the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Athletic’s Zack Meisel wrote about Cleveland Guardians pitching prospect Daniel Espino, a physician’s son whose promising profession has been stalled a number of instances on account of surgical procedures.

MLB.com’s Elizabeth Muratore wrote concerning the mantra that has introduced British coaches to MLB.

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RANDOM FACTS AND STATS

Roberto Clemente and Honus Wagner co-hold the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise report for video games performed. The Corridor of Famers every suited up 2,433 instances.

Three place gamers in modern-era (since 1901) Cincinnati Reds franchise historical past have recorded successful of their lone plate look for the group: Joseph Burns (in 1910), Crimson Lutz (1922), and Paul Noce (1990).

Buster Posey had a .302 BA, 1,500 hits, and 460 extra-base hits, and 729 RBIs.Sean Casey had a .302 BA, 1,531 hits, and 464 extra-base hits, and 735 RBIs.

Robin Yount had 3,182 hits, together with 251 residence runs.Tony Clark had 1,188 hits, together with 251 residence runs.

The Detroit Tigers signed Johnny Damon on as we speak’s date in 2010. Damon went on to play one season in Motown, recording 146 of his 2,769 profession hits, in addition to eight of his 235 residence runs and 11 of his 408 stolen bases. He had a 107 wRC+ and a pair of.3 WAR for a Tigers group that completed with a report of 81-81.

Gamers born on as we speak’s date embody Ferdinand De Paige Moore, a primary baseman who went 2-for-4 whereas enjoying in a pair of video games for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1914. Per his B-Ref bio web page, Moore later grew to become a detective for the Atlantic Metropolis police division and at one time was head of the vice squad. He fatally shot a cigar retailer proprietor, after which himself, in 1947.

Additionally born on as we speak’s date was Steve Colyer, a left-hander who made 61 aid appearances whereas enjoying for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Detroit Tigers, and Atlanta Braves throughout the 2003-2007 seasons. His pitching ledger — a report of 1-1 with a 5.04 ERA over 55-and-a-third innings — isn’t all that notable, however his batting ledger places him in pretty choose firm. Together with Eddie Gaedel and a small variety of others, Colyer walked in his lone profession plate look.

Muggsy Bogues performed in a single recreation and went hitless in two at-bats for the South Atlantic League’s Gastonia Rangers — a group managed by Bump Wills — in 1991. A 5-foot-3 level guard, Bogues performed 14 NBA seasons, 9 of them with the Charlotte Hornets.