Montero on Trevor Bauer: ‘He never wanted to listen’
Feb 11, 2013, 7:43 PM | Updated: Feb 12, 2013, 3:16 pm
It was common knowledge last season that Diamondbacks pitcher Trevor Bauer did not do a great job of endearing himself to the rest of the team.
It would be unfair to classify him as having “feuded” with the likes of Kirk Gibson and catcher Miguel Montero, but it’s fair to speculate that his personality rubbed folks the wrong way, which eventually led to the pitcher being traded to Cleveland in the offseason.
With the 2013 campaign set to begin, Montero, who caught for Bauer, admitted it was not easy working with the young right-hander.
“It was tough,” Montero told Arizona Sports 620’s Burns and Gambo at FanFest Saturday. “When you get a guy like that and he thinks he’s got everything figured out, it’s just tough to commence and try to get on the same page with you.”
Montero said the goal was to simplify things for the rookie, but the cerebral Bauer wanted no part of that.
“He would make it even harder,” Montero said.
Bauer struggled in four starts with the D-backs, compiling a 1-2 record to go along with a 6.06 ERA. He walked 13 batters in 16.1 innings while striking out 17.
It would have been easier for the organization to work through the player’s growing pains had he simply been easier to work with.
“Since day one in Spring Training I caught him and he killed me because he threw about 100 pitches the first day,” Montero said, adding he told Bauer he should take it a bit slower and work on locating his fastball first before working on his breaking pitches.
“And he said ‘yes’, and the next time he threw I saw him doing the same thing,” Montero said. “He never wanted to listen.”
As one of the team leaders, Montero is a player who should probably be listened to. One of the game’s better catchers, Bauer’s unwillingness to work with him did not bode well for his future in the desert.
“He’s got his ways, and it’s tough to change it,” Montero said. “Good luck to (Indians catcher) Carlos Santana there.”
