Montero (2-1) took the loss Wednesday against the Astros after letting up four runs (two earned) on three hits and a walk with no strikeouts over two-thirds of an inning.
Montero entered in the eighth inning looking to preserve a two-run lead and left the game with the Mariners needing two runs to keep the game alive. The 30-year-old quickly found himself in danger with two men on and one out but had a chance to get out of it with a double-play ground ball; however, 2020 Gold Glove winner Evan White's throwing error extended the inning and allowed a run to score. Montero ended up allowing the next two men to reach, bringing home the tying run before manager Scott Servais had seen enough. His replacement wasn't much better, allowing two of the inherited runners to score before finally getting out of the nightmare inning. Montero had a nice stretch of four straight scoreless outings before Wednesday's collapse, but he now has four blown saves and a 4.09 ERA on the year. It wouldn't be surprising if Servais demoted the hard-throwing righty from a share of the closer's role due to his lack of consistency so far this season.