Mother Nature denied Rafael Montero his first start with the Las Vegas 51s in Triple-A last night. The rain moved his debut with the squad to today, the first ballgame of a doubleheader against Iowa.

The right-hander allowed a leadoff single to Iowa’s Logan Watkins, but Francisco Pena erased him as he attempted to steal second base. Montero settled down and squashed any other potential first inning threat by inducing a ground out and strike out to finish the frame with 11 pitches.

The top of the second saw Montero allow another leadoff single, this time to Dave Sappelt, followed by a double off the bat of Brad Nelson. His new teammates bailed him out by cutting down the runner at the plate to keep the contest scoreless.

From there, Montero did what we’ve become used to seeing, as he retired 14 consecutive Cubs batters, until he gave up the game-tying home run to Brian Bogusevic to start the seventh inning. He retired the next two before walking Brad Nelson, effectively ending his afternoon. Unfortunately, Josh Edgin wasn’t able to strand him on base, and the Cubs eventually walked off with the victory, giving Montero the loss in the Triple-A debut.

Despite the loss, he showed he’s ready for the next level. His final line was an impressive one: 6.2 innings, two runs allowed on four hits, one walk, and five strikeouts. Of the 86 pitches he threw, 56 of them were strikes.

It’s amazing to see the resolve this kid has. After allowing seven runs on 10 hits on May 1st to Erie, he immediately bounced back in his next two starts for Binghamton, and being brought up to Triple-A didn’t phase him in the slightest. It’s too bad he wasn’t able to close out the seventh inning and had to leave the game with a bitter taste in his mouth following the home run and two-out walk, but that shouldn’t take away from his overall body of work.

Like we saw in spring training when he shutout the Washington Nationals through 4.2 innings, it looks like Montero has the ability to take on the extra pressure, which bodes well for his future as a major league pitcher. Outside of the physical ability needed to be competitive, I think the most important aspect for a hurler to succeed at the highest level is to have the mental capability to step up to a challenge. Montero proved that during his time with the Mets in big league camp, and he just proved it again today for Las Vegas.

This was supposed to be a spot start before heading back to Double-A, but I’d be shocked if we see him head back to Binghamton. He’s obviously ready for the next level of competition, and as a top-10 prospect within the organization, the Mets should do whatever is best for Montero’s development. If this was the test to see whether or not he’s ready for Triple-A, he’s certainly passed and should be staying right where he is.

Las Vegas would fail to hold onto their one-run lead and lose via walk-off to the Iowa Cubs, 2-1.

Thoughts from Mitch Petanick

What an impressive debut for Montero. He was the same exact guy that we saw with Binghamton. He’s an absolute strike machine, and all he does is dominate. I thought we might see him struggle a little bit against the advanced hitters, and it looked like he might after giving up three hits in the first two innings. But the kid has ice water in his veins, and battled back to retire 14 consecutive hitters.

I couldn’t have been more impressed with Montero’s start. He shows command of his pitches, knows how to get hitters out, works quickly, and can battle back from adverse situations — what more do we have to see? If Montero is sent back to Double-A, it will leave many scratching their heads. With his performance today, he showed that he belongs at the Triple-A level. Even more impressive is the fact that he did this against a Iowa Cubs lineup who has a bunch of guys with previous major league experience.

I don’t see how the Mets send him back down…we’ll see if they stick to their guns.

(Photo Credit: Gordon Donovan)