Montero left his last start for Las Vegas after just five pitches.
Following a short stint in the big leagues in which he occasionally looked solid, Mets right-handed pitching prospect Rafael Montero left his latest start for Triple-A Las Vegas with an apparent injury.
Today it is being reported that Montero has strained an oblique muscle. That's a little strange because oblique injuries are usually suffered by hitters who put stress on the area when they swing the bat. It's yet to be seen how long Montero will be out of action, but an injury like this tends to keep players out for two weeks or more.
A break from pitching could be just what Montero needs to get back on track., as he hasn't performed all that well since his amazing 10-strikeout game against Arizona on May 25. Montero allowed three runs in under four innings in his final major league start, and he let up nine runs combined in his latest two outings for Las Vegas.
Billed as a pitcher with great command coming into the season, Montero has walked more batters this season than he was expected to. Hopefully this setback is just a minor one and the 23-year-old can return to action soon and continue to work on his game.