Former MLB catcher Jesus Montero dies after traffic accident

The Venezuelan baseball community is mourning today. The New York Yankees announced on social media this afternoon that former big leaguer Jesus Montero passed away earlier today, with reports out of his home country stating that he was involved in a motorcycle accident earlier this month and had been in the hospital until today. He was 35 years old.

Signed by the Yankees as an amateur free agent in 2006, Montero was one of the top prospects in baseball before making his big league debut in 2011. Baseball America had listed him as the fourth top prospect in 2010, and MLB Pipeline had him listed at #9 in 2011. Montero would play in 18 games for the Yankees as a September call-up, collecting four doubles, four home runs, and 12 RBIs to finish off the year.

New York would trade him to the Seattle Mariners in the following offseason, with right-hander Michael Pineda being the focal player in return. It was with the Mariners that Montero saw the most playing time, with the right-handed hitting catcher suiting up in 208 games across four seasons with the AL West squad, producing a .247/.285/.383 slash line with 24 home runs and a .668 OPS through 745 at-bats.