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Willie Montanez

Willie Montanez
Ultimate Mets Database popularity ranking: 82 of 1218 players
Montanez
Guillermo Naranjo Montanez
Born: April 1, 1948 at Catano, P.R.
Throws: Left Bats: Left
Height: 6.00 Weight: 185

Willie Montanez was the most popular Ultimate Mets Database daily lookup on August 16, 2011, August 12, 2012, July 30, 2013, November 1, 2014, August 3, 2019, September 6, 2019, and November 12, 2023.

1b

First Mets game: April 7, 1978
Last Mets game: August 11, 1979

Share your memories of Willie Montanez

HERE IS WHAT OTHER METS FANS HAVE TO SAY:

Ernie
Flashy and very good at first base. He was doing the snatch catch long before anybody ever heard of Rickey Henderson.

Chris
In 1978, Mets v. Pirates @ Shea, 2 outs, Willie hits a ball over the 396 sign in left-center, Bill Robinson goes back, leaps up, reaches for the ball as it clears the fence, slams into the wall, falls down; meanwhile Montanez circles the bases and grabs some bench. Robinson gets to his feet, jogs to the second base ump, opens his glove and flips him the ball. One of the top 5 outfield catches I ever saw.

Mike
Montanez was a really good player; flashy glove and he could drive the ball (almost had 100 RBI in his one full season at Shea.)

Montanez loved to flip his bat in-between pitches and I loved it; while I never got a date for it, I did it as well as he did and 25 years later, I can still do it.

goreking
January 16, 2001
Wille Stiff. That's all I remember.

Mr. Sparkle
April 20, 2001
I remember Willie swinging at a pitch during an intentional walk. It probably really pissed off the pitcher but I thought it was hysterical. He was a hot dog.

David Grover
May 25, 2001
I remember they way he would slyly tip his glove down after he caought the ball at first base an his home run trot which he would walk home from third base.

Barry Wenig
July 13, 2001
How WAS he able to bounce his bat off home plate like that?

Elliott
October 2, 2001
The best Montanez story really has to do with the San Diego Chicken. In the lean years of the late 70's the Mets booked the Chicken to come to Shea and he was hilarious. Besides hanging out of the centerfield camera position in the batters eye he did a Pete Rose imitation diving head first into bases like Rose which broke everyone up. But the highlight had to be when he came out of the Met dugout flipping a bat like Willie. Then making believe he hit a homer and pointing at it like Willie would. Running the bases and jumping on every base like Willie and then walking the final 20 feet down the 3rd baseline to the plate like Willie. Shea was going nuts. Only the Chicken could capture the true essence of the worlds biggest hot dog.

Charlie
December 12, 2001
I was a big fan of Guillero's while he was here.

My favorite Willie story...

Old-Timer's Day 1978, the day they brought Kiner out in a hot-air balloon. Mets vs. Cubs

2 out, nobody on in the middle innings. Bobby Murcer hit a one-hop shot to first, which Willie gloved beautifully. Murcer took 2 steps down the line and quit on it.

Willie just stayed in his crouch position, holding the glove up in the air & never made a move to the bag. I don't think the out was ever officially recorded!

Bob R.
January 8, 2003
Oh lord, just seeing his name brings back bleak memories of those awful late '70s Mets teams. They used to close the upper deck because there weren't enough fans. Shea was like a ghost town then. Willie was a pretty good player but it must have been hard for any of the Mets to get motivated knowing they'd finish last no matter what they did. What made it worse was that the Yankees were a great team then. Ugh.

Jim McEnroe
June 17, 2003
I remember two things very well about Willie Montanez.

1. He was an excelent fielder.

2. His quote was used by comedian Garrett Morris on "Saturday night live" for several years. One time some writer asked Willie about something and he responded "Beisboll been berry berry gooood too meee."

Rob D. from Jersey City
June 23, 2003
...and don't forget about his glove around the back trick either. I was 11 yrs. old and thought his hot-dog act was the coolest thing I had ever seen. I copied a lot of his gimmicks and used them a lot during that little league season. And was screamed at by my coach as a result!

Phil Thiegou
April 20, 2004
DO I GET MUSTARD WlTH THAT H0T DOG?!?! Another case of a Met killer who goes downhill when he becomes a Met. He wasn't the greatest player, but the most fun to watch. Like a previous message, in Little League and later in the company softball league I twirled my bat on my way to the plate and made the behind the back switch when making a putout at first and all my coaches ripped me a new one for doing so. One coach yelled at me, "What are you? Some kind of hot dog!?!?" I nearly fell over on the field laughing my butt off. Willie will never have a place in Cooperstown, but will have a place in all our hearts.

Kiwiwriter
July 13, 2004
1978 Mets scorecard headline for a story about the acquisitions of Lenny Randle, Tim Foli, and Willie Montanez (at the expense of Jon Matlack and John Milner and others): "Trades bring Mets needed balance."

I stared at the headline and wondered, "Balanced what? Mediocrity?"

That's my big memory of Willie Montanez. That and him being announced, "Now batting, Wil-lie Mon-ta-nez!" The Yankees had Willie Randolph, the Mets once had Willie Mays, now it was "Wil-lie Mon-ta-nez!"

I remember the closed-off upper deck, too. Andrew and I would sit in the mezzanine on $1.50 tickets.

They were able to finish last without him in 1979.

john e
June 3, 2005
Not that I was transfixed, but he used some sort of butt-twitch to time pitches, much in the way Joe Morgan pumped his left arm.

Buzz
September 23, 2005
I think you're right Dairy Lea. Montanez was a true "hot dog" and always fun to watch even when he would mess up. You don't see players like him anymore who do some stylin' but who also hustle. Back in Willie's era you had to husltle or else you'd find yourself on the bench no matter how good you were.

Bob Inzerillo
December 23, 2005
The Mets getting Montanez in the winter after the '77 season bothered me. It had nothing to do with him personally. He was a solid, proven player in stints with the Phillies, Braves, and Giants. But, the Mets had just traded away Tom Seaver in June. Board chairman, M. Donald Grant had publicly called Seaver an ingrate for asking for a contract extension and a raise from his $250K salary. Seaver was there since '67 and put the Mets on the map. Seaver said that if the Mets didn't appreciate what he meant to them, that they should trade him. So, off to the Reds he went. Then, that off-season they go pick up Montanez. He was signed and making $330,000 a year, but the Mets had no problem paying him.

Montanez, if I remember right, wasn't happy (who was at that point) coming to the Mets. He was a hot dog player famous for his snatch catches at first base. I think he was part of a 3 team trade that sent Jon Matlack to the Rangers while John Milner went to the Pirates. He did OK in '78, but the Mets, minus Seaver and Matlack, plus no hitting, were horrible. By '79 he was just going through the motions. I remember one game where he did his snatch catch on a throw from an infielder, and flung the ball down the line by accident. He was obviously unhappy and was traded for Mike Jorgensen in his second year here. Another big acquisition that became a disappointment. In fairness to the Mets, he did seem to wear out his welcome quickly and played for 8 or 9 teams by the end of his career.

Jonathan Stern
February 8, 2006
I own the VHS of the closing ceremonies for Veteran's Stadium. Montanez came onto the field, representing one of the early 70's Phillies teams, and did a little hot dog shuffle. The ceremony concluded with Tug McGraw, in what might have been his final public appearance, reenacting his 1980 WS-ending strikeout of Willie Wilson. Brings tears to my eyes every time I see it.

Mario Arduini
October 21, 2007
As I was growing up in the 70's Cable TV hit my area and I started watching the Mets. I immediately became a Montanez fan and I have been ever since. He had a lot of fun playing the game and I have a 1978 Mets team signed ball and two of his game used bats. I am truly his #1 fan. I think he is my all-time favorite player.

dutch
June 16, 2010
I was a big fan of Willie's when he was with the Mets. I even bought a Willie Montanez baseball cap. It was green, with a cartoon picture of Willie and the words "Willie Montanez" in the front. I didn't wear it often but it always got a reaction. I think I still have it in a closet somewhere.

Mitch45
September 27, 2010
Willie was a bright spot in a very dark time for the Mets. Other than Rusty Staub, who had 105 RBI in 1975, I don't think any Met player had as many as Willie's 96 RBI in 1978.

Koosman and a Rain Delay
July 6, 2012
Growing up near Port Jervis, we could only get channel 9 (not 11) so I was forced to become a Mets fan in the mid 70s. My uncle would take me to one game a year and Koosman always started and there was always a rain delay. I remember in 78 attending a game and people would be drinking and smoking pot and every time Montanez was involved in any play, an older man next to us would yell in accented English "Montaneeeez, do something for your country!" It's been a treat reading these old memories from the dreadful Mets teams I grew up with. Passed the curse on to my poor son. Being a Mets fan builds character.

To the moderators--thanks for this site; I recently cleaned out my mom's house and found old Mets yearbooks etc. It's silly, but our childhood baseball memories have such resonance and reading about Leo Foster or Mark Bomback brings a strange, wistful joy.








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