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Diamondbacks pitcher Jordan Montgomery did not have the season he was hoping for after signing a deal with the team, but the pitcher still managed to get the last laugh after the team’s owner publicly ripped his performance while saying his contract was a “horrible decision.”
Jordan Montgomery had plans to cash in as a free agent after wrapping up his 11th season in the MLB with a World Series win as a member of the Rangers, but he was unable to find any team willing to stomach the $100 million contract he was reportedly seeking.
He opted to bet on himself a bit by inking a one-year deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks worth $25 million just two days before Opening Day, and the lefthanded pitcher was obviously aiming to use the 2024 season to prove he deserved the kind of contract he’d failed to secure.
However, things did not end up panning out as he envisioned.
Montgomery ultimately started 21 games for the Diamondbacks while posting an 8-7 record and an abysmal 6.23 ERA that led to the team opting to relegate him to the bullpen toward the end of August. The following month, Arizona found itself engaged in a three-way race with the Braves and the Mets but ended up on the outside looking in when the playoffs rolled around
While Montgomery’s lackluster performance wasn’t the only reason the team failed to punch its ticket to the postseason, it certainly didn’t help, and Diamondbacks owner Ken Kendrick wasn’t shy about voicing his displeasure when he took the blame for the signing while putting the pitcher on blast, saying:
“If anyone wants to blame anyone for Jordan Montgomery being a Diamondback, you’re talking to the guy that should be blamed…
Looking back, in hindsight, a horrible decision to invest that money in a guy who performed as poorly as he did. It’s our biggest mistake this season from a talent standpoint. And I’m the perpetrator of that.”
It’s safe to assume Kendrick also shoulders the blame for giving Montgomery a player option he’d be able to exercise for a minimum of $20 million if he had at least 10 starts—a number that rose to $22.5 million if he hit the 18-game threshold—and the pitcher unsurprisingly took advantage by officially opting in on Thursday.
The following players have exercised their options for 2025, per sources: Dbacks LHP Jordan Montgomery, Royals OF Hunter Renfroe and Royals RHP Chris Stratton.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) November 1, 2024
There’s a chance the Diamondbacks will try to offload Montgomery in the offseason, but it’s hard to imagine other teams are going to be knocking down their door in an attempt to acquire a struggling veteran who will be 32 years old when the 2025 campaign kicks off.