SEATTLE — The Houston Astros traded reliever Rafael Montero to the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday night, offloading a bloated contract from a payroll perilously close to the luxury tax threshold while freeing the franchise from owner Jim Crane’s calamitous cameo as a head of baseball operations.
Atlanta will send a player to be named to the Astros, who sent cash considerations to the Braves to cover some of Montero’s $11.5 million salary. Montero is playing in the final season of a three-year, $34.5 million contract Crane gave him while running the baseball operations department during the 2022 offseason.
Montero posted a 4.92 ERA across 109 2/3 innings after signing the deal. The Astros designated him for assignment last August, but Montero accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Sugar Land instead of electing free agency.
Multiple league sources said the Astros tried to offload Montero this winter, but found no takers for a 34-year-old reliever with one standout major-league season. That Montero added a splitter this spring and pitched well in limited action early this season may have made him more palatable. So did the onslaught of pitching injuries that accompany the start of every season.
Getting some of Montero’s money off the books is crucial for an Astros club that, according to multiple team sources, does not want to exceed the luxury tax threshold for a second consecutive season. Asked on Opening Day whether he gave a mandate to get under the tax, Crane replied, “We don’t really stay focused on that. We really stay focused on winning and putting the best combination of players we can put on the field.”
Before Tuesday’s trade of Montero, Cot’s Baseball Contracts approximated the Astros were $1,917,285 under the first tax threshold. Any additional room would be welcomed, especially if Houston is in a position to add before the July trade deadline.
Montero morphed into an integral member of Houston’s World Series-winning bullpen in 2022, posting a 2.37 ERA across 68 1/3 innings. He pitched in four of the Astros’ six World Series games against the Philadelphia Phillies, recording a hold in their thrilling 3-2 win in Game 5 at Citizens Bank Park.
Crane rewarded that one season of sustained success with a high-dollar deal that raised eyebrows from the moment it became official. The owner engineered it only a few days after “parting ways” with general manager James Click. Later that winter, Crane and senior adviser Jeff Bagwell brought in first baseman José Abreu on a three-year, $58.5 million contract that now ranks among the worst deals in franchise history.
The Astros released Abreu last May and are still paying him $19.5 million this season.
(Photo: Erik Williams / Imagn Images)