Meet Lazaro Montes: Top 100 Mariners Prospect With Huge Power

Image credit: Lazaro Montes (Photo by Bill Mitchell)

A quick glance at Mariners prospect Lazaro Montes is all it takes to see why the tall and powerful 20-year-old has earned comparisons to Yordan Álvarez.

But when you look at what he’s accomplished at the plate through his three professional seasons, it becomes clear that Montes is not just another promising talent—he’s a legitimate force in the making.

Montes, quite literally, crushed it at Low-A Modesto last season. He homered in 66 games in 2024, finishing as the California League MVP despite seeing a late promotion to High-A Everett. Overall, he slashed .288/.397/.484 across both Class-A levels with 21 home runs.

The Cuban slugger, who signed for $2.5 million as an international free agent in 2022, received the opportunity of a lifetime this spring when the Mariners invited him to their big league camp. There, Montes not only got to pick the brains of fellow members like Julio Rodríguez, Victor Robles and Randy Arozarena, but he also learned from past Mariners greats like Edgar Martínez and Ichiro Suzuki.

“It’s important to be consistent,” said Montes, a Top 100 Prospect who ranks seventh in the Seattle system. “In every game, every at-bat. I worked on making sure every day I was coming to the plate prepared and controlling everything that came my way. That was my biggest lesson.”

Montes’ profile is driven by his 70-grade power. Last season, he recorded a 104.8 mph 90th percentile exit velocity. He swings with full force every time, displaying a pronounced back shoulder tilt and an uphill plane that unmistakably signals his intention to launch balls into orbit.

“He has a plan at the plate,” said Zach Vincej, who managed Montes last year at Low-Modesto. “He has a great approach going up there, and he is so talented. He sticks to his plan, he’s able to pick good pitches to hit and he does a really good job at staying disciplined at the plate.

“That goes a long way for a hitter of his age.”

Vincej was spoiled with a talented group of prospects as the manager at Low-A Modesto in 2024. Colt Emerson, Michael Arroyo, Tai Peete and Jonny Farmelo were all featured in the lineup for the Nuts last year, which saw the team win its second consecutive California League championship.

Yet, amid all this talent, none blossomed quite like Montes, who was named the Mariners’ 2024 Minor League Player of the Year by Baseball America.

Like many prospects, Montes comes with his fair share of fine-tuning. While he makes very loud contact, strikeouts have become an issue. He had a 29.6 strikeout percentage after getting promoted to High-A.

At the same time, Montes is still able to generate plenty of walks, netting 78 free passes last year.

“There’s times where he’ll get out of his approach, and he’ll start swinging out of his zone,” Vincej said. “But he’s really good at being aware of what he’s doing. That’s what makes him great. He’s able to adjust on the fly, and great players in the big leagues are able to adjust. And I can see that with him everyday.”

His bat makes up for his strikeouts, but defensively, Montes doesn’t have much to offer as of now, meaning there is plenty of room for improvement. He struggles with tracking balls consistently and often takes inefficient routes. His size (6-foot-3) may be a disadvantage when playing in the outfield—or running in general—as it takes a bit longer for him to accelerate with his long strides.

Vincej, however, praised Montes for his improvement at the position. He points to Montes taking live reads every day in the outfield and constantly asking questions to see how he can improve in his craft.

“It’s progressed a lot,” Montes said. “We’re still improving, but I feel really good about where my defense is at. The Mariners are really helping me with that aspect of my game.”