Montero showing great growth in second half

SAN FRANCISCO -- When Elehuris Montero described his approach at the plate that has led to a career-high 17-game on-base streak, he almost made it sound simple.

"I'm going up there, feeling comfortable and seeing pitches, laying off the bad stuff," Montero said in Spanish through interpreter Aaron Muñoz. "I'm basically letting the pitcher come to me. I'm getting the pitches that I want, and I'm swinging at the pitches that I need to swing at."

Basic as those principles of hitting may be in theory, it requires experience to carry them out in practice.

Montero drove in the Rockies' lone run as they fell, 9-1, to the Giants on Saturday night at Oracle Park. With the loss, Colorado is 9-31 against National League West teams this season and still has yet to win a divisional series, with only three chances remaining.

As the Rockies secured the 10th 90-loss season in franchise history, Montero went 1-for-2 with a walk and a sacrifice fly. He was the only Colorado player to reach twice against San Francisco ace Logan Webb, who scattered three hits and a walk across six scoreless innings.

During Montero's active on-base streak dating back to Aug. 14, he's hitting .352 (19-for-54) with seven extra-base hits and 10 RBIs. He has drawn seven walks against 17 strikeouts, a vast improvement from earlier in the season, when he walked just five times and piled up 68 strikeouts in 49 games.

Echoing what Montero said, Rockies manager Bud Black has seen an improved plate discipline lead to results for the 25-year-old infielder.

"I think it's a couple of things, mainly," Black said. "Putting the ball in play -- when you do that, with his strength, he's going to get some hits. A little bit laying off that breaking ball, down and away."

Montero has quietly put together a productive second half, entering Saturday's game with an .810 OPS that ranks second only to Nolan Jones among Rockies players with a minimum of 100 plate appearances since the All-Star break.

Part of Montero's breakthrough at the plate can likely be attributed to his uptick in playing time. Montero only got 18 plate appearances in July, but he started to become a regular in the Rockies' starting nine after the Aug. 1 Trade Deadline.

In the Minors, the bulk of Montero's experience in the field came at third base, where he's blocked by Ryan McMahon. Montero didn't have much opportunity to play first base either, but when C.J. Cron was dealt to the Angels at the Deadline, the position was open for the taking.

And Montero, for the time being, has seemingly locked it down.

"I've seen some major growth from him, not just offensively but defensively," said starter Chase Anderson, who was charged with six runs in 3 1/3 innings. "He's playing a really good first base, making some good picks, some good reads. And at the plate, I mean, he's doing a lot better job of spitting on that slider down. It's hard to do."

Though Montero consistently swung a hot bat at every level of the Minors, he has struggled to match that level of production in parts of two seasons in the big leagues. Now, with the Rockies out of contention for a fifth straight year, Montero has the chance to prove he is part of the club's future.

"Any player will tell you that they want regular at-bats to really prove what they can do," Black said. "A young player is not entitled to just get his at-bats, right? I mean, you've got to earn them to a certain extent.

"But we're at a point now where we have to see what these fellows can do, and we're going to play a lot of these young guys to see, really, what they're made of."

With the growing pains that accompany a 90-loss season, Colorado's young core has relatively flown under the radar. But the Rockies see a bright future ahead, thanks to the promising contributions from several of their up-and-comers.

"I've been fortunate to be playing with them even in the Minor Leagues," Montero said. "We're growing together. We're experiencing this together. … We've established a great relationship together as a group, and we look forward to coming up and contributing in the future."