Colson Montgomery opened his MLB career with an .827 OPS in his first month after debuting July 4 before cooling to a .682 OPS in August. He hit five home runs in each of his first two calendar months and has a .760 overall OPS and 1.1 WAR per FanGraphs. The month of August included a nearly 40% strikeout rate. Montgomery rebounded from an early-season Triple-A slump (.149/.223/.255) that prompted one-on-one work with hitting director Ryan Fuller and a trip to the team's Arizona hitting complex to rediscover his form. Defensive play exceeded expectations, converting difficult outs and covering both shortstop and third base.
''You definitely go back and look when you were rolling, when you were feeling good,'' said Montgomery, who went 0-for-3 with a strikeout in his return to the lineup Wednesday after missing a game because of discomfort in his side. ''And you are not trying something new; you are trying to re-create. I still feel pretty good. I think it's 'Angry August' for a reason.''
The dog days of summer have seen Montgomery, 23, strike out in nearly 40% of his at-bats this month, but he still has shined overall since his debut. He has 1.1 WAR, per FanGraphs, with his .760 overall OPS. As far as slumps go, that's barely a hiccup compared with the .149/.223/.255 roadblock he slammed into at the start of the season in Triple-A Charlotte, forcing the Sox to yank him from the field in favor of one-on-one training with hitting director Ryan Fuller.
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