Miguel Montero sounded off on his Cubs teammate Jake Arrieta last night and the response from his teammates and team was very strong.
Montero was upset about the pitcher’s slow delivery because the stolen bases affect the catcher’s stats. Hopefully that’s not all team’s consider because he’ll be looking for a new team today after making these comments to the media.
"It really sucked because the stolen bases go to me, and when you really look at it, the pitcher doesn't give me any time. So it's just like, 'Yeah, OK Miggy can't throw nobody out,' but my pitcher doesn't hold anybody on.”
Of course, neither the team nor teammates were all too pleased by this. Nobody was more upset than Cubs’ first baseman Anthony Rizzo who basically spelled out the end of Montero’s Cubs career.
Montero’s Cubs career didn’t last much longer, as he was designated for assignment just over an hour later.
Apparently his value hasn’t totally plummeted his value as a player, because the Blue Jays have already started to express interest in the catcher. Perhaps that is because Montero did kind of have a point. Fangraphs did an analysis of Montero and Arrieta’s work together and although it’s not entirely the pitcher’s fault (Montero’s arm has clearly been declining) the stats do suggest that they shouldn’t be working together.
Despite all the harsh words exchanged over the past 24 hours, Montero did leave on a positive note.
