Elehuris Montero

Montero thrived in the lower levels of the minors before hitting a roadblock at Double-A in 2019, slashing .188/.235/.317 with a 31.1 K% in his first stint at that level. That Montero was overmatched may have had more to do with his age (he was 20 at the time of his promotion) and a pair of injuries (including a broken hamate bone in his left hand) than his skillset, and his struggles did not prevent the Cardinals from adding him to their 40-man roster the following November. Whether Montero's contact returns at the upper levels with more seasoning will be key; despite an aggressive approach at the plate, he demonstrated solid bat-to-ball skills and posted strikeout rates mostly in the teens prior to reaching Double-A. With that in mind, 2021 will be an important year for Montero. A strong showing early could lead to a callup to the big club, while further stumbles may stoke talk of his bust potential.

Sometimes a unique skill allows a hitter to have success even when it seems he should be an easy out. Montero is an uber-aggressive hitter with length in his swing that should, in theory, lead to hard contact that is mitigated by a lot of swing and miss. Fortunately, Montero has elite hand-eye coordination and barrel awareness that has allowed him to have immense success thus far, particularly as a 19-year-old at Low-A. He won the Midwest League batting title (.322 AVG) and took home MVP honors while finishing second in the league with a 157 wRC+. He maintained an impressive all-fields, line-drive-oriented approach after a promotion to High-A. All but one of his 16 home runs went to the pull side, but if he can maintain a strikeout rate around 20% while lacing line drives to all fields, he should continue to have a lot of success. Double-A will be a big test. He may outgrow third base, so it is imperative that he continues to rake.