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Yankees cut ties with ex-Mets, Astros World Series champion reliever
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- Yankees cut ties with ex-Mets, Astros World Series champion reliever
Yankees cut ties with ex-Mets, Astros World Series champion reliever originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The New York Yankees released an 11-year veteran reliever from the organization on Tuesday morning.
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The right-hander did not make a Major League appearance with the Yankees before he was cut loose.
According to an announcement from the Scranton Wilkes-Barre RailRiders on X, the AL East club has parted ways with Rafael Montero .
Montero, 35, won a World Series with the Houston Astros in 2022 and spent five seasons with the AL West club as a valuable member of their bullpen.
"Montero's season was delayed due to visa issues that prevented him from getting to camp on time with the Yankees," Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors wrote. "Since he didn't pitch at all during camp, he opened the season in extended spring as he built up toward joining the RailRiders in Scranton."
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In 27 Triple-A innings, Montero posted an ugly 5.67 ERA. However, he struck out 25.8% of the batters he faced and permitted just three home runs.
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In 2025, Montero threw 60.1 combined innings across 59 appearances between the Astros, Atlanta Braves , and Detroit Tigers .
His best work of the season was with the Tigers, allowing seven earned runs in 22 innings with 19 strikeouts and just 12 hits.
Given his lengthy MLB experience, Montero should be able to find another minor league deal. Better success could land him in a Major League bullpen before the year is done.
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