Veteran lefty Jordan Montgomery and Texas Rangers finalize $1.25M contract

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SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Veteran left-hander Jordan Montgomery and the Texas Rangers finalized their $1.25 million contract Friday.

Montgomery, who was part of the Rangers' only World Series championship in 2023 after being a trade-deadline acquisition, won't be ready for the start of this season while rehabbing from a second elbow reconstruction surgery.

The 33-year-old Montgomery could also earn some potential performance bonuses.

Texas made room on its 40-man roster with right-hander Zak Kent being designated for assignment. He was acquired last month on a waiver claim from St. Louis.

Montgomery was pitching for the Cardinals in 2023 when they traded him to Texas. The lefty went 4-2 with a 2.79 ERA in 11 regular-season games for the Rangers before winning two AL Championship Series games, including the Game 7 ALCS clincher in Houston. He went 3-1 in six games that postseason, the loss coming when starting Game 2 of the World Series against Arizona.

He then left in free agency and signed with the Diamondbacks, going 8-7 with a 6.23 ERA in 2024 before missing all of last season.

Depending on his rehab, Montgomery could provide some pitching depth for the Rangers in the second half of this season. His surgery last year was done by Dr. Keith Meister, one of their team physicians.

Montgomery first had Tommy John surgery in 2018 that was performed by former New York Yankees team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad.

Over eight big league seasons with the New York Yankees, St. Louis, Texas and Arizona, Montgomery is 46-41 with a 4.03 ERA in 166 games (161 starts).

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB