Jordan Montgomery took the hill for the New York Yankees in their Sunday night exhibition at home against the New York Mets. The left-hander surrendered no runs and three baserunners while logging six strikeouts across five innings (59 pitches) en route to a Yankees’ victory.
Montgomery says “everything” feels different on the hill (quotes per NJ.com’s Brendan Kuty).
“Arm speed, conviction, strength,†Montgomery said. “Everything, really.â€
Montgomery made 29 starts for the Yankees in 2017, recording a 3.88 ERA and 1.23 WHIP. He has made just seven starts since 2017 due to an elbow injury. Montgomery has a chance to round out a rotation that’s expected to include Gerrit Cole, James Paxton, Masahiro Tanaka and J.A. Happ.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone is “really proud” of how far Montgomery has come.
“I’m really proud of Monty on where he’s at,†Boone said.
“For how good as he was in spring and then again so far here in summer camp, I think he even put it all together for his entire outing,†Boone said. “You saw everything and that’s a good lineup over there. The ability to pitch with the fastball, the cut fastball has become a real factor for him. The changeup and curveball. A number of really quality pitches he made to get swings and misses, weak contact, whatever it was.â€
Montgomery says he feels “really good” about where he’s at.
“I was really excited after spring (training) and I was in a good place then,†Montgomery said. “It was just a little extra hold off. The excitement is still there. I was excited (Sunday). Just ready to get out there with the guys.â€
He added, “I feel really good about where I’m at and only going to keep getting stronger the more pitches I throw.â€
The Yankees open the 2020 Major League Baseball season on the road against the World Series-champion Washington Nationals on Thursday.