Rafael Montero
33-Year-Old
2024 Stats
W-L
0-1
ERA
3.32
WHIP
1.06
K
13
SV
0
Rest-of-Season Projections
2024 Fantasy Outlook
A year after signing a big, 3-year contract to return Houston, Montero regressed back to the inconsistent pitcher we knew from years past. The 33-year-old posted a horrific 5.08 ERA, 1.53 WHIP and 1.5 HR/9 while recording a mere 11 saves-plus-holds after racking up 37 the year prior. Montero's hard-hit metrics also took a huge step backward last season. His 29th percentile barrel percentage (9.1 percent) plummeted from the 99th percentile mark (2.9 percent) he posted the season prior. The strikeouts, whiffs, and fastball velocity remained, but the veteran right-hander appears destined for middle relief in 2024 thanks to Houston's electric late-inning triumvirate of Josh Hader, Ryan Pressly and Bryan Abreu. Read Past Outlooks
Pitching well to begin 2024
Montero allowed one walk and no hits while striking out one across a scoreless inning to earn a hold Saturday against the Nationals.
ANALYSIS
The Astros were projected to have a strong bullpen with Josh Hader, Ryan Pressly and Bryan Abreu all leading the way in high-leverage situations. However, each has struggled to begin the new campaign, while Montero has now turned in nine scoreless performances in 11 appearances. He's pitched primarily in the sixth and seventh innings this season, though he could earn higher-leverage work given his solid start.
The Astros were projected to have a strong bullpen with Josh Hader, Ryan Pressly and Bryan Abreu all leading the way in high-leverage situations. However, each has struggled to begin the new campaign, while Montero has now turned in nine scoreless performances in 11 appearances. He's pitched primarily in the sixth and seventh innings this season, though he could earn higher-leverage work given his solid start.
Pitching Stats
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2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
Minor League Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
16
Last 10 Games
17
Last 5 Games
17
How many pitches does Rafael Montero generally throw?
1-10
11-20
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
81-90
91-100
101-110
111-120
121+
What part of the game does Rafael Montero generally pitch?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2022
-12%
BAA vs LHP
2024
-24%
BAA vs RHP
BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2022vs Left | .220 | 74 | 37 | 63 | 9 | |||
Since 2022vs Right | .251 | 91 | 21 | 75 | 9 | |||
2024vs Left | .250 | 5 | 4 | 10 | 3 | |||
2024vs Right | .189 | 8 | 2 | 7 | 1 | |||
2023vs Left | .267 | 35 | 18 | 35 | 4 | |||
2023vs Right | .291 | 44 | 11 | 39 | 7 | |||
2022vs Left | .157 | 34 | 15 | 18 | 2 | |||
2022vs Right | .227 | 39 | 8 | 29 | 1 | |||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2022
-36%
ERA at Home
2024
-10%
ERA on Road
ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2022Home | 2.96 | 1.19 | 91.1 | 9.9 | 3.0 | ||||
Since 2022Away | 4.64 | 1.32 | 66.0 | 8.9 | 3.8 | ||||
2024Home | 3.46 | 1.23 | 13.0 | 6.2 | 2.8 | ||||
2024Away | 3.12 | 0.81 | 8.2 | 4.2 | 2.1 | ||||
2023Home | 4.10 | 1.53 | 37.1 | 11.3 | 3.6 | ||||
2023Away | 6.30 | 1.53 | 30.0 | 9.6 | 4.2 | ||||
2022Home | 1.76 | 0.88 | 41.0 | 9.7 | 2.4 | ||||
2022Away | 3.29 | 1.24 | 27.1 | 9.5 | 4.0 | ||||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Stat Review
How does Rafael Montero compare to other relievers?
This section compares his stats with all relief pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 30 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
2.17K/9
5.4BB/9
2.5HR/9
1.7Fastball
95.1 mphERA
3.32WHIP
1.06BABIP
.213GB/FB
2.07Left On Base
86.2%Exit Velocity
80.8 mphBarrels/BBE
3.3%Spin Rate
2260 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
16.7%Swinging Strike
8.9%Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Rafael Montero See More
Ronel Blanco blanked the Blue Jays on Monday, continuing a trend of no-hitters that come from out of nowhere.
Brad Johnson is back for the 2024 season and kicks off his column with a deep dive into the American League West pitching staffs, where in Houston ageless Justin Verlander leads the group.
Todd Zola considers a new approach to regressing a pitcher's BABIP, which suggests better days should be ahead for Hunter Greene.
Erik Halterman discusses the players who have most changed their projections per THE BAT X this season, including Felix Bautista, who's now in a tier of his own among his fellow relievers.
Latest Fantasy Rumors
Option for Toronto?
Montero could be targeted by the Blue Jays in free agency, opines Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca.
ANALYSIS
Montero is fresh off a World Series victory with Houston, where he played a critical role at the back end of the bullpen. The 32-year-old logged a 2.37 ERA across 68.1 regular-season innings and had a 1.93 ERA in 10 appearances during the Astros' playoff run. He recorded 23 holds and 14 saves as he served as the fill-in closer when Ryan Pressly was unavailable.
Montero is fresh off a World Series victory with Houston, where he played a critical role at the back end of the bullpen. The 32-year-old logged a 2.37 ERA across 68.1 regular-season innings and had a 1.93 ERA in 10 appearances during the Astros' playoff run. He recorded 23 holds and 14 saves as he served as the fill-in closer when Ryan Pressly was unavailable.
Past Fantasy Outlooks
2023
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2015
2014
A post-hype breakout at age 31? Montero was a surprising contributor to Houston's league-best bullpen, quickly establishing himself as the Astros setup man and backup closer after a phenomenal start to 2022. The right-hander added velocity to all four of his pitches, yielding excellent results across 68.1 innings. He posted career marks in saves (14), holds (23) and ERA (2.37) while ranking highly across most Statcast metrics. In particular, Montero's 2.9% barrel percentage was sixth-best in the league and within the 99th percentile. His well-timed outputs during a contract year earned him a 3-year, $34.5 million deal to return to Houston, where he will presumably pitch the eighth inning again and back up Ryan Pressly.
More Fantasy News
Takes loss with ugly line
Montero (0-1) allowed four earned runs on three hits and a walk in two-thirds of an inning to take the loss Saturday against the Mariners.
ANALYSIS
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Picks up save
Montero allowed a hit and tallied one strikeout in a scoreless inning to earn a save in Friday's win over the White Sox.
ANALYSIS
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Remaining in Houston
Montero signed a three-year, $34.5 million deal to return to the Astros on Saturday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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Works out of trouble to earn save
Montero picked up the save with a scoreless ninth inning against the Rays on Sunday. He allowed one hit and two walks while striking out one.
ANALYSIS
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Allows two runs in win
Montero (5-2) earned the win Saturday against the Orioles. He allowed two runs on two hits while striking out one over one inning.
ANALYSIS
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