Rays unexpectedly call up former Rockies infielder who's struggling in Triple-A

The Rays signed Miami native Coco Montes to a minor league deal this offseason. He was also invited to spring training where he slashed a respectable .297/.395/.405 in 37 at-bats. Earlier today, the Rays decided to call him up to the big leagues in lieu of Jonny DeLuca's right shoulder strain injury.

However, he was the last player that fans expected to receive a call to the majors this early. The Durham Bulls' Eloy Jimenez and Chandler Simpson seemed to be the logical options to replace DeLuca in the outfield, but there is a good reason for recalling Montes. Out of the three athletes, he's the only one currently on the 40-man roster. Therefore, in order to call up Simpson or Jimenez, they'd have to DFA a position player.

Now you could argue that we should've DFA'd Coco Montes and called up the lightning fast contact-hitter or even the proven power threat. Those arguments are completely valid, but clearly the Rays see something in the USF product that's worth salvaging for the time being.

If he fails to produce at the MLB level, then you can DFA him and move on to your up-and-coming top prospect. Would we be shocked if he found a way to hit when his opportunities come around? Not necessarily.

The former Japanese League infielder played 46 games last year for the Yomiuri Giants. He finished with a .272 AVG and 14 RBIs. The power numbers were non-existent as Montes only accrued one home run, but there's reason to believe he can still hit at the major league level.

In spring training, Montes also blasted one home run, a grand slam against the Washington Nationals. It was his second career grand slam as the 28-year old also hit one at Coors Field in 2023. That homer was one of his seven big league hits for the Rockies before he was DFA'd. Now, Coco Montes will get the chance of a lifetime to revive his MLB career.

The Rays infield situation looks rather bleak right now aside from Brandon Lowe's hot start and Jonathan Aranda's impressive resurgence. Taylor Walls is back to his old ways of hitting below .200 and Junior Caminero has come out of the gates slow with only one extra-base hit in 28 at-bats. Maybe Montes can fire up his teammates with a strong showing at the plate.