Diamondbacks Owner: Jordan Montgomery's $47.5M Contract Was 'Horrible Decision'

On the heels of getting eliminated from MLB playoff contention on Monday, Arizona Diamondbacks owner Ken Kendrick put the heat on himself for a free-agent move that backfired on the team.

During an appearance Tuesday on the Burns & Gambo Show (h/t USA Today's Bob Nightengale), Kendrick lamented the decision to sign pitcher Jordan Montgomery to a two-year, $47.5 million contract.

"Looking back, in hindsight, a horrible decision to have invested that money in a guy that performed as poorly as he did," he said. "It was our biggest mistake this season from a talent standpoint. And I'm the perpetrator of that."

Montgomery was among the worst pitchers in Major League Baseball this season, as he went 8-7 with a 6.23 ERA and 1.65 WHIP in 25 appearances, including 21 starts.

The 31-year-old lefty had the best season of his career in 2023 when he went 10-11 with a 3.20 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 166 strikeouts over 188.2 innings split between the St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers.

Montgomery also made six playoff appearances, including five starts, going 3-1 with a 2.90 ERA, as the Rangers won the first World Series in franchise history.

Despite his excellent performance, Monty surprisingly went unsigned throughout the offseason. It wasn't until two days before Opening Day in late March that he finally landed a deal with the D-Backs.

Since he did not have the benefit of spring training, he began the season in the minor leagues, posting a 10.57 ERA in two starts at Triple-A Reno before getting called up to the big leagues.

After reaching the World Series last season, the Diamondbacks led the National League with 886 runs scored this season, but they also surrendered the third-most runs in the NL with 788.

As a result, Arizona went 89-73 and missed out on a wild-card spot due to a tiebreaker, as the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves took the final two places in the NL with matching 89-73 marks.

The D-backs had a chance to clinch a playoff berth Monday, but they needed either the Mets or Braves to earn a sweep in a doubleheader. Instead, they split, which gave both of them a playoff berth.

Now, the Diamondbacks begin their offseason in disappointing fashion, and starting pitching was undoubtedly their undoing.

Aside from ace Zac Gallen, who posted a 3.65 ERA, no other Arizona pitcher who started 10 or more games had an ERA under 4.00 this season.

That suggests the Diamondbacks will have to make some significant changes to their rotation during the offseason, but there is no guarantee they will be able to move on from Montgomery.

Since he made over 18 starts in 2024, he can opt in at a $22.5 million salary in 2025. Should he do that, it would perhaps severely limit the moves Arizona can make.

However, it's possible Montgomery could enjoy a bounce-back year in 2025 should he have the opportunity to go through a proper spring training unlike this year.