Lou Montanez, 2010 Upper Deck #78

I'll take a break from posting autographs to show you my impulse buy from FanFest. While strolling the third floor of the convention center, I spotted a sign outside of a conference room: "Silent auction and game-used items". I stopped dead in my tracks and inhaled sharply. I've toyed with the notion of ponying up for a game-used jersey ever since I spotted a rack full of them at the National in August. There was something intoxicating about those polyester uniform tops, brightly colored with 1980s-2000s logos and wordmarks, bearing names and numbers of thoroughly uninspiring ex-players. Anyone can own a Cal Ripken, Jr. or Roy Halladay jersey. But a Kirk Saarloos Athletics jersey or a Peter Bergeron Expos road jersey...these things appeal to my twisted sense of humor and aesthetics.


I entered the room and gravitated toward a table piled high with orange and black batting practice jerseys. They were all available for $50 each, and the names and numbers were a wonderful cross-section of forgotten or soon-to-be-forgotten coaches, instructors, minor leaguers, and fringe major leaguers. I glossed over the instructors and minor league coaches. Even I didn't want something as esoteric as a Richie Hebner #99. Same thing goes for the spring training invitees who didn't sniff the majors; tough luck for you, Chorye Spoone and Blake Davis. I spent several minutes clutching a Jake Fox #47 black road jersey. There's something about that big, hard-swinging lummox that just reaches me. But then I realized that it was enormous, a size 52 that hung to my knees. I briefly considered an Oscar Salazar #16 and an Adam Eaton #56, but ultimately settled on a Lou Montanez #16 (size 48). I like the look of the black road jersey over the orange home jersey due to the "Baltimore" wordmark. Besides, the shade of orange on the other jersey looks washed-out.

Lou also seemed like a good choice because he came across as an articulate and decent guy during his time in Baltimore (and Bowie and Norfolk). He also had some rabid supporters among O's fans, including one Camden Chat member who declared, "LOU CAN HIT. DEAL WITH IT." That phrase became a running joke on the blog. Montanez just signed as a free agent with the Cubs, the organization with which he spent the first seven years of his professional career. I guess that ensures that I will be the only person in Charm City wearing a Lou Montanez jersey. As tongue-in-cheek keepsakes go, it's a good one.

Lou Montanez, 2009 Topps 206 #105

Yesterday afternoon I returned from my too-brief getaway to Ocean City to see a telltale yellow bubble envelope sticking out of my mailbox. It was from Ryan of "'O' No!!! Another Orioles Blog". He had answered my plea and knocked four cards off of my inaugural "Coveted Cluster" list: the Lou Montanez card you see above, as well as Dennis Sarfate's 2008 Topps Heritage High Numbers, Chris Waters' 2009 Upper Deck, and Robert Andino's 2010 Topps Heritage. That's four more players represented in my Orioles collection, and I've dug around the Internet and tabbed four worthy cards to replace them in the Coveted Cluster. But wait...there's more!

Ryan mentioned that he'd be sending along some other Orioles that might be of interest. Well, he was on the mark with that assessment, as the additional cards filled a few dozen empty slots in my collection. There were a ton of newer cards from sets I hadn't bought into (2009 Upper Deck Goodwin Champions, 2010 Bowman, etc.), as well as a few vintage O's that I'd needed. So big thanks to Ryan, who now gets to play the waiting game while I root through my house with his want list in hand.

After I made such a big deal out of adding Lou Montanez to my collection, I'd be remiss if I didn't tell you a bit about his tumultuous career. Andy MacPhail drafted him with the Cubs' first-round pick (third overall) in 2000 out of Miami Coral Park High School in...you guessed it, Miami, FL. Other notable first rounders that year were Adrian Gonzalez (#1), Rocco Baldelli (#6), Chase Utley (#15), and Adam Wainwright (#29). With the 14th pick, the Orioles took Beau Hale, who has been out of baseball for three years now. Moving on...

Lou (then known as Luis) spent seven years in the Cubs organization and didn't reach AAA until his final season in the system. He hit only .224 in 82 games at Iowa, with a .281 on-base percentage and .371 slugging percentage, and was eligible for minor league free agency following the 2006 season. He split 2007 between Bowie and Norfolk, and hit .288 overall with a bit of power (but only .259 at AAA). The O's assigned him to the Baysox for 2008 and he stayed there for the majority of the season; it was the fourth straight year he'd put in time at AA. The 26-year-old had figured out enough about the mid-minors to win the Eastern League Triple Crown, hitting .335 with 26 home runs and 97 RBI. He slugged .601, and the Birds finally gave him the call he'd been waiting for in early August as an injury replacement. He made his debut on my 26th birthday, and received his first start the next day. Though the Orioles lost that game, he made history by becoming the first O's position player to hit a home run in his first at-bat. Lou stuck around until the end of the season, hitting .295 in 38 games.

With Felix Pie's arrival in 2009, Montanez lost out in the numbers game and was sent back to the minors to start the year. But Pie was awful early on and Lou was back by late April. Unfortunately, he couldn't catch lightning in a bottle twice. He hit .204, broke his wrist in late May, and fell behind both a resurgent Pie and an emerging Nolan Reimold. Lou returned in September, playing just enough to drag his average down to .183. This season was more of the same. An afterthought in spring training (he memorably referred to himself as "the third monkey on Noah's gangplank"), he again found himself in Baltimore due to injuries (Pie) and ineffectiveness (Reimold). But 2010 was even worse than 2009 had been for Montanez: a .140 average in 26 games and more injuries. He's once again eligible for free agency, and it sounds like he's searching for a new baseball home and some better luck.