The market for Diamondbacks left-hander Jordan Montgomery appears to be heating up as we get closer to Opening Day. His most recent performance against the Colorado Rockies was a step in the right direction, with 2.2 scoreless innings and showcasing that he can still be somewhat effective.
With Montgomery back on the mound and pitching again, trade interest appears to be back up again according to Arizona Sports insider and co-host of Burns & Gambo John Gambadoro.
There has been recent interest from a few teams in trading for Diamondbacks starter Jordan Montgomery. After a solid 2 2/3 scoreless outing today against Colorado in a spring training start there may be more.
— John Gambadoro (@Gambo987) March 19, 2025
The Diamondbacks signed Montgomery to a one-year, incentive-laden deal plus a vesting option he could opt out of for 2025. The veteran left-hander made 25 appearances, 21 starts, for the 2024 season. That earned him $22.5 million for last season, plus set the 2025 option for the same amount. Montgomery made the no-brainer decision not to stay and bank on a rebound instead. It's unlikely that Arizona will be able to shed all of that money, but they could save a significant chunk of what is owed if they can leverage the trade market correctly.
For the Diamondbacks, the key return would be a reduction in payroll instead of a prospect return. His 6.17 ERA over 117 innings is already bad on its own, but xERA didn't give him much of a break at 5.18. There are some positives in Montgomery's Statcast data, as he ranks in the 91st percentile in chase rate and 61st in whiff rate, but he's struggled with hard-hit rate and expected batting average, which rank in the 30th and third percentile amongst major league pitchers. That likely hints towards a location issue rather than a stuff issue.
Being able to offload what is easily their worst contract would be great for the Diamondbacks. It would free up more payroll for them to make meaningful additions ahead of the July 31 trade deadline and free up a spot on the Opening Day roster for both Ryne Nelson and Brandon Pfaadt to make the team. If Montgomery is still in Arizona come March 27, then one of the two pitchers could be pushed off the major league roster. It's a scenario that isn't great for either pitcher, as they have nothing left to prove in the minors and have had stretches of success at the major league level.
As of this writing, two known teams have been looking for pitching depth between the Chicago Cubs and Baltimore Orioles. Neither team has made an addition since the March 9 report on The Athletic from Ken Rosenthal and Patrick Mooney, so they'd make natural trade targets. It makes more sense for them to target a pitcher who's going through the normal Spring Training process than a free agent pitcher who hasn't. It will be interesting to see if the Yankees, who've lost two starters for the season to Tommy John surgery may jump into that market, although they've been quiet so far.
Should the Diamondbacks fail to trade Montgomery over the next week, then it's likely he holds onto a bullpen spot as the long reliever. Pfaadt appears to be the favorite to win the heated fifth-starter battle based on a better underlying performance for the entire 2024 season, which would put Nelson in Triple-A Reno to open the season as injury depth.