By Phil Wade
Director, PBR Indiana

Jarrett Montgomery, Indiana’s fifth ranked prospect in the 2015 class, recently committed to College Baseball Powerhouse Florida State University.  Montgomery, also ranked as the No. 18 prospect overall in the Prep Baseball Report Coverage area, is a 6-foot-1, 185 pound RHP/OF with an electric arm.

Before heading into his sophomore season at Lawrence Central, Montgomery was consistently throwing upper 80’s to 90 mph fastballs, earning him the honor of the No. 1 prospect in Indiana’s 2015 class.  However, this winter, Montgomery started dealing with tendinitis in his throwing arm.  The tendinitis was something that affected the sophomore throughout the spring, causing his velocity to drop some.

Montgomery had some struggles during this past high school season on the mound, going only 1-3 and was up and down with his velocity.  By the end of the high school season, however, it was apparent that his tendinitis was clearing up.  His velocity was getting back into the upper 80’s to low 90’s and he was throwing strikes a lot more consistently.  Montgomery did, however, excel at the plate throughout the year hitting in the leadoff spot where he hit .348 with 8 homeruns, and led the team in stolen bases.

Montgomery plays for the Indiana Prospects in the summer. He gives the Prospects organization a lot of credit in helping him with the recruiting process.

“They have helped me a lot with recruiting.  Since I’m a sophomore colleges have to go through my coaches in order to talk to me, and the coaches here have been a huge help.”

Montgomery first reached out to Florida State last year after touching 92 on the radar gun at a tournament in Iowa.  Since last fall, Florida State has been a huge interest of his, and was a place he strongly considered playing college baseball.  There was such strong interest in FSU, that Montgomery took an unofficial visit this past winter where he toured the campus and visited the baseball facilities along with the coaching staff.

“I took a visit down there this past winter and absolutely loved it.  The campus, weather, facilities, and coaches were all amazing.  The coaches talked about how many people attended their home games and playing in the ACC and I was amazed.  I knew after that visit FSU was a school I’d love to play baseball at.

Last weekend, Montgomery and the Indiana Prospects were playing in a tournament in East Cobb, GA.  The Prospects' coaching staff handed Montgomery the ball in a game versus the Dallas Mustangs.  Montgomery and the Prospects would end up losing the game, but Montgomery would end up winning over Florida State, who was there watching the game. 

“I’ve been consistently hitting 90 mph most of this summer and threw a great game against the Mustangs.  Unfortunately we lost, but felt as though I threw a great game and did some things well at the plate.”

After the game, Montgomery officially committed to Florida State.

“I committed to Florida State for several reasons.  The campus is amazing, the facilities are top notch, and the coaches are great.  They’re also looking at me to be a two-way player when I arrive on campus.  They like my bat and like me on the mound.  They are one of the only schools I was considering that would take me as a two-way player, so that was a big reason for committing to FSU.”

Montgomery was also considering College Baseball Powers’ University of Florida, and LSU.  He took an unofficial visit to Florida, but never made it to LSU’s campus.

There is speculation that Montgomery will be a high draft pick after his senior season. 

“My first intention is to go to college after high school.  If I’m drafted high and the contract is right then obviously it will be hard to turn down professional baseball, but right now I plan on going to Florida State.  But don’t’ get me wrong, my ultimate goal is the MLB.”

Now that Montgomery has committed, some stress will be relieved next spring when he takes the field for Lawrence Central as Junior.

“Committing is a stress reliever.  I won’t have to worry about the scouts; I can just relax and play my game.  I’ll keep in contact with FSU throughout the season as I’m sure they won’t be able to make many games.”

This fall Montgomery has his eye on another sport other than baseball.

“This fall I’m playing football, which will be my first year on varsity. I’ll be playing safety and special teams. Playing football should help me get bigger and stronger both physically and mentally.”

Baseball will still be a major part of his fall and winter.

“Although I will have a lot of focus on football, I’ll continue to work on baseball.  I’m going to let my arm rest for a couple of months and get things going again this winter throwing wise.  I really want to improve my off speed pitches and overall arm strength. In the fall I’ll continue to hit to improve at the plate.”

Montgomery considers himself a “winner”.  His goal next spring and the team goal are to win games and to win a state championship.

“I’m a winner, I always want to win.  My goal and LC's goal is to win state.  Personally I want to lead the state in every category I can both offensively and on the mound.” 

Montgomery is the second 2015 player from Indiana to officially commit. No. 2 ranked Ashe Russell, a RHP from Cathedral HS, is committed to Notre Dame.  

The 2015 class in Indiana is loaded with top end arms, and throughout the next few months we expect to see several of them make their commitments.   

Class of 2015 Indiana Rankings