Diamondbacks pitcher Jordan Montgomery sits on the bench during a game between against the Cardinals on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, at Busch Stadium.
When he walked into Busch Stadium on Tuesday after arriving at his old ballpark with a former Cardinals teammate, Diamondbacks starter Jordan Montgomery couldn’t help but feel like he was retracing his steps.
“It’s weird being on the other side for sure. I rode in with (Dylan) Carlson today. I almost walked in with him. I was like, ‘Ah, I can’t,’” Montgomery said, laughing.
Back in the ballpark where he made a National League Wild Card series relief appearance for St. Louis, Montgomery is scheduled to face his former team for the first time Wednesday in what will be his second start since signing with the Diamondbacks.
The lefty was acquired by the Cardinals at the 2022 trade deadline when St. Louis made a push for the NL Central Division crown. A year later, when the Cardinals became sellers last summer, he was dealt alongside reliever Chris Stratton to the Rangers for a haul that included reliever John King and prospects Thomas Saggese and Tekoah Roby.
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“Just excited to get out there. I mean, playing baseball against old friends, but I’ll be competing and they will be competing and we can be friends again after,” Montgomery said.
Montgomery, who held a 3.42 ERA and had a 6-9 record in 21 starts at the time of his trade to Texas, went 4-2 with a 2.79 ERA in 11 starts for a Rangers club that entered the 2023 postseason as a wild card and ended it as World Series champions.
The lefty contributed to Texas’ first championship season by posting a 2.90 ERA in 31 innings across six October outings — five of which were starts. His postseason run included a start against the National League champion Diamondbacks. He threw six innings and allowed four runs in a Game 2 loss to his future team.
“That’s what you work for,” Montgomery said of the World Series run. “I got over there (and there was) a bunch of great guys, and they were just running on all cylinders. It was fun. Glad I could kind of be that push to get them through it.”
After a successful postseason, Montgomery entered this past offseason as one of the top pitching targets on the free-agent market and a likely candidate for a long-term deal.
However, Montgomery’s one-year, $25 million deal with Arizona that includes a vesting option for 2025 was not reached until two days before the Diamondbacks’ season opener on March 26 and was not made official until March 29. Less than a month after his deal became official, Montgomery reportedly switched agencies and is now represented by Wasserman after previously being represented by Boras Corp.
When asked if the Cardinals had reached out to him this offseason about a potential return, Montgomery declined to comment.
“I’m not talking about the offseason. I’m not talking about that,” Montgomery said.
Because he did not have a traditional spring training build-up, Montgomery threw in a simulated game and made two Triple-A starts before making his Diamondbacks debut on April 19. In a start against the Giants, the lefty allowed one run across six innings in an outing he said he had to “gut it out” to earn his first win with his new team.
Against his old team on Wednesday, he expects much of the same from himself.
“You want to make a good impression,” Montgomery said of his debut outing. “... But they brought me here to win games, and that’s what I’m going to keep trying to do.”
Carlson moving forward
Carlson is “making progress” toward beginning a rehab assignment, but the date that could begin is still undecided, per Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol. The switch-hitting outfielder took batting practice on Monday and was said to be feeling “good” as he continues to ramp up activities after suffering a left shoulder sprain in the team’s second-to-last spring training game. Carlson was set to be cleared to take on-field batting practice Tuesday, but rainy weather prevented him from doing so.
With the Cardinals set to begin a six-game road trip Friday to face the New York Mets and Detroit Tigers, it is undecided if Carlson will continue his rehab on the road with the Cardinals or if that work will continue in St. Louis. Remaining in St. Louis could give Carlson a more controlled environment for his rehab work, Marmol noted.
Extra bases
- Tuesday marked the first day of right-hander reliever Riley O’Brien’s throwing progression, Marmol said. O’Brien, who was cleared to begin work with plyo balls, has been on the injured list with a right forearm flexor strain since March 31.
- Right-hander Keynan Middleton (right forearm flexor strain) continued his throwing progression on Tuesday and has gradually increased the distance from which he is throwing.
- Left-hander Drew Rom is scheduled to be reevaluated in the coming days as his recovery from tendinitis in his left biceps has “stalled.”
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