September 9, 2011; Anaheim, CA, USA; New York Yankees catcher Jesus Montero (63) rounds the bases after he hits a solo home run in the third inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Crash Details Revealed After Former Yankees Player's Death

Originally posted on New York Yankees on SI
By Jack Markowski | Last updated Oct 21, 2025 1:06 PM ET

Additional details have been revealed following the tragic death of former New York Yankees prospect Jesús Montero, who was involved in a motorcycle accident in his home country of Venezuela.

Further Information Released

Per the New York Times' Ronny Reyes, who cited a report from Venezuelan outlet El Nacional, Montero had been in a medically-induced coma following the crash, which occurred at the beginning of the month on October 4.

"The onetime promising Yankees prospect who died Sunday after an Oct. 4 motorcycle accident in his native Venezuela had been lingering in a coma before his death, officials revealed," Reyes said.

"Jesús Montero, 35, was riding the motorcycle when he collided with a pickup truck in Valencia about 93 miles west of Caracas, officials said.

"The brutal crash left the former Yankee with a punctured lung, six broken ribs and multiple fractures to his femur, tibia, and fibula, as well as hip and knee injuries, local outlet El Nacional reported."

"Montero was rushed to the Dr. Enrique Tejera Hospital, where he suffered cardiac arrest and needed to be resuscitated, the outlet said.

"The former major leaguer was induced into a coma and also put on dialysis because of the extent of the damage to his renal system."

Kim Klement-Imagn Images

Montero's MLB Career

Montero signed with the Yankees as an international free agent in 2006. He'd later emerge as one of the top prospects in baseball, with both Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus ranking him within their top-seven farmhands across the sport in their preseason rankings for three years in a row from 2010 to 2012.

He went on to make his big-league debut for New York during September 2011 and would bat .328/.406/.590 with four home runs over 69 plate appearances.

Montero was traded to the Seattle Mariners for a package headlined by starting pitcher Michael Pineda ahead of the 2012 campaign, however. He made the club's Opening Day roster that year and finished with a slash line of .260/.298/.386 to go alongside 15 home runs in 135 games.

The right-handed slugger remained with Seattle through 2015, posting an OPS of .629 with nine homers in a total of 73 contests over his final three seasons with the team, before being claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays in March 2016.

Montero never played in a major-league game for the team, though, and was suspended for 50 games at the end of the year after testing a positive for a banned substance.

The Baltimore Orioles signed Montero to a minor-league contract in January 2017, but he was released that June.

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