Montero Out For the Year

Yankees catching prospect Jesus Montero, the organization's #1 prospect, will miss the next 4-6 weeks with a fractured finger. With the MiLB season ending in about a month, that means the 6-4 Venezuelan will be done for the remainder. Montero had been enjoying an incredible season up to this point. After terrorizing the Florida State League (.356/.406/.583) for a couple months, he was moved up to Double-A Trenton--a big jump for a 19-year-old. Montero handled the promotion with ease, however, hitting .317 with 9 homers and posting a solid 14-21 BB-K ratio in 44 games.

While it seems pretty bleak, this shouldn't be too bad for the Yankees. Montero will miss a sizable chunk of time, but he is already well ahead of the curve developmentally, and he should be healthy in time for an assignment to the Arizona Fall League or some other winter league. When he returns, Montero will still be a fearsome hitter and one of the top prospects in baseball.