Former Gamecock pitcher Jordan Montgomery signed a one-year deal with the Texas Rangers worth up to $1.25 million, according to Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News.
Jordan Montgomery was drafted in the fourth round in the 2014 MLB amateur draft by the New York Yankees after pitching for the South Carolina Gamecocks from 2011-14.
Montgomery started his freshman year in 2011 for the Gamecocks, and he posted a 2.62 ERA and went 6-1 in 13 starts. He threw eight innings of shutout baseball in the NCAA College World Series against Arkansas to propel South Carolina to back-to-back College World Series wins.
Montgomery followed up a Freshman All-American campaign in 2011 with a more impressive season in 2012, going 6-1 with a 1.48 ERA in 13 starts and 79 innings.
In his junior season, Montgomery pitched a career-high 100 innings with 16 starts and a 3.42 ERA. After his junior season, he left Columbia for the MLB draft.
Montgomery spent six seasons with the New York Yankees. He started his career out hot, finishing sixth in American League Rookie of the Year voting after having a 3.88 ERA in 29 games started.
The southpaw had to undergo Tommy John surgery and only pitched 27.1 innings in 2018. He struggled in 2019 and 2020, only throwing 48 total innings and having an ERA above five in both seasons.
In 2021, he returned to form with a 3.83 ERA, but after 21 starts in 2022, the Yankees sent Montgomery to the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for outfielder Harrison Bader. In the second half of that season, Montgomery had a 3.11 ERA, and in one of those games, he pitched a shutout.
He spent another half-season with the Cardinals in 2023 before he was traded to the Texas Rangers. Montgomery posted a 2.79 ERA in the second half of 2023 with the Rangers and was a key piece in their 2023 World Series run.
After a stellar year and a World Series win, Montgomery cashed out with the Arizona Diamondbacks, earning a one-year, $25 million contract. Montgomery only started 21 games before he had to undergo Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career.
In his second stint with the Rangers, Montgomery will join a talented rotation with Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi and MacKenzie Gore in hopes of claiming his second World Series title with the Rangers.