ST. LOUIS — Standing at his locker on Friday afternoon, Jordan Montgomery perked up as he listed off Yankees players and personnel that he still keeps in touch with almost one year after being traded to the Cardinals.
That grin flipped into an glare, however, when the left-hander was asked if he thinks back to what could’ve been if the Yankees didn’t send him packing at last year’s trade deadline, dealt in exchange for Harrison Bader.
“It was their decision to get rid of me,” Montgomery said.
Whether he’ll admit it or not, you have to figure the southpaw was out for revenge on Sunday afternoon, looking to show the organization that drafted and developed him what they are missing.
Facing his former teammates — and in many cases, his close friends — Montgomery was brilliant. He flirted with a no-hitter into the middle innings and outdueled Yankees ace Gerrit Cole in a 5-1 win.
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The loss was an uninspiring conclusion to an up-and-down road trip for the Yankees that previously featured a perfect game and sudden offensive explosion. They finished with a 3-3 record in Oakland and St. Louis, heading back to New York for a seven-game homestand beginning on Monday night.
Montgomery was in total control from the very first pitch on Sunday, still warming up to 50 Cent’s Back Down like he did in the Bronx. The southpaw didn’t give up a base hit until the sixth inning, an opposite-field double from Gleyber Torres with two outs.
Meanwhile, ace Gerrit Cole was constantly navigating traffic, pitching into and out of trouble. The right-hander finished his 18th start of the year with six innings of two-run ball, striking out five while giving up six hits. Those two runs came across on RBI singles from rookie Jordan Walker and backstop Andrew Knizner in the fourth.
Pitching into the seventh inning for the fourth start in a row, Montgomery finally faltered, giving up an RBI double off the bat of…
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