Mariners must answer for questionable timing after Lazaro Montes' sensational debut

Lazaro Montes made his Seattle Mariners debut on Tuesday, and it was everything everyone could have hoped for. Two hits. Two runs batted in. Two runs scored. One home run. Breaks from routine don't get better than that, though the question now is why he didn't arrive sooner.

If the timing for Montes' debut was just right, it's more a technicality thing than a meritocracy thing. The Mariners called him up as soon as they had an extra roster spot, which is not to be confused for as soon as possible. They could have called him up at any time, and their first logical window to do so opened in mid-August.

That's rookie cutoff time in Major League Baseball, a rough demarcation line for when teams can promote prospects while ensuring that they'll retain rookie eligibility for the following season. That matters for prospect promotion incentive purposes, which helps explain why the Mariners waited on promoting Kade Anderson.

As for whether Montes should have been considered for a mid-August promotion, the honest truth is that we can't think of any good reasons why not. The 21-year-old right fielder made the leap from Double-A to Triple-A in early July, and promptly hit the ground running. Through August 15, he had a .982 OPS and 10 home runs to show for his first 31 games with the Tacoma Rainiers.

What were the Mariners up to around then? Well, they were losing eight out of 10 while scoring 2.2 runs per game. They only improved to 7-8 and 4.1 runs per game in their next 15 games. Trade deadline newcomer and right fielder Taylor Ward was complicit, posting a .378 OPS in his first 19 games as a Mariner.

Put all that together, and it sure looks like the Mariners wasted time before pressing the Montes button.

Now that Lazaro Montes is here, Mariners must milk his power and energy for all they're worth

Montes' contributions to last night's cause did not prove to be empty calories. The Mariners ended up needing everything when the Boston Red Sox clawed back from a 9-1 deficit to force Andrés Muñoz to close out a 9-6 win. It seems they also needed Montes' energy, which was all the rage after the game.

“That type of energy, it can do something for a team for sure,” Bryan Woo said after tossing six innings of two-run ball. “Really, really excited to have him. He’s a great kid.”

The Montes that the Mariners saw on Tuesday was the same Montes who had spent the season delighting minor league crowds. Any guy who can hit 38 home runs in 123 games can do that, but people tend to get more hyped for guys who bring vibes. Montes is that kind of guy.

The best argument against him is also the best argument for his delayed call-up: he swings and misses and strikes out a lot. Yet it's not as if this is some new revelation, and his last two minor league seasons (he homered 32 times in 2025) add up to one big proof of concept that he can be the rare sort who overcomes having holes in his swing. He has that kind of power. The vibes are just a bonus.

If nothing else, he's already succeeded in making a team that was 10 games under .500 feel more watchable. Asking him to put the team on his shoulders is probably asking too much. But now that Montes is here, he might as well try.

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