Tributes have been paid to a former Yankees star who was killed in a motorcycle accident, aged 35.
Jesús Montero suffered severe injuries when his bike hit a pickup truck in his home country Valencia, Venezuela earlier this month. He was put into an induced coma but died at Valencia City Hospital over the weekend and the Yankees announced his passing Sunday.
“The Yankees are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Jesús Montero. We send our sincerest condolences to his family and loved ones,” a spokesperson for the team said.
Montero had been described as the best Venezuelan hitting prospect since Miguel Cabrera when he signed as an international free agent in 2006 for $1.6 million.
He spent four years in the minors with New York before his major league debut in September 2011 in a game against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.
However, Montero’s time with the Yankees did not last. After playing 18 regular season games and one playoff game in the ALDS against the Detroit Tigers, he was traded to the Mariners where he logged 208 games and 796 plate appearances.
From 2013, Montero suffered a torn left meniscus while also being suspended for 50 games because of his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal for performance enhancing drugs.
July 2015 was Montero’s last major league season. He then played for the Toronto Blue Jays and later the Baltimore Orioles’ minor league in 2017 before playing for Mexico in Venezuela.
His major league statistics include a .253 batting average, 28 home runs, 104 RBI and 204 hits and 73 runs.
Montero is survived by his two children Loren Alejandra, 11, and Jesus Alejandro, 10, who he had with his ex-wife Taneth Gimenez.
In a post to her Instagram, Gimenez posted photos of Montero with their children with captions hoping he rested in peace.
“I’ll keep the good memories tattooed on my soul,” she wrote.
The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League also put out a tribute to Montero, reflecting on his talent for the game.
“A powerful bat, an unforgettable presence, a heart that loved this game,” they said in a statement in Spanish.
