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EP 7: Miguel Montero — Playing The ‘Game of Failure’ And Winning The World Series
The year was 2001 when Miguel Montero, a 16-year-old, living with his family in Caracas, Venezuela, was signed into baseball’s minor leagues. His contract was for $13,000, but the money was hardly what excited Miguel.
“All I wanted was a plane ticket and put me in the Dominican and leave the rest up to me,” he recalls.
But being away from home, he quickly found that it wasn’t easy. He was fending for himself far from his family, and he wasn’t playing his best ball. There were times, he remembers, when he thought of quitting. But Miguel found the willpower to stick around, and in doing so, he learned a lesson that he carried with him all the way to the World Series.
“I was not the most talented guy,” he says. “I really worked hard. I put in a lot of work and I got better. He told himself “I got to be really strong mentally… there’s one way that you’re going to survive, and it’s competing. They’re good, but they’re not better than you and you’re not better than them. You’ve just got to beat them someway or the other, and it’s competing.”
On this episode of the Working For a Dream Podcast, Patrick and Miguel talk about how he hustled in his way to becoming a two-time MLB All-Star, how it felt hitting a Grand Slam in the NLCS (with a back injury to boot), and how he set (and achieved!) his three main goals for coming to the U.S.
What You’ll Learn:
- Why Miguel believes he “plays the game of failure” — and is glad he does
- How he approaches being retired at 37
- What he’s doing to support young baseball players in Colombia through the Miguel Montero Academy
- And much more!
Favorite Quote:
“It was a grind but it was a good grind, because you love what you do. When you start thinking ‘this is a job,’ that baseball is a job, that’s when everything starts falling apart because the passion stops. It’s about playing with passion and not even worrying about the money you want to make, because in the end if you play good, the money’s gonna be there, as long as you just enjoy what you’re doing and play well.”
— Miguel Montero
How to Get Involved:
Connect with Miguel:
Miguel Montero Academy
Connect with Patrick:
View all episodes
By Patrick Bolanos
4.9
6464 ratings
The year was 2001 when Miguel Montero, a 16-year-old, living with his family in Caracas, Venezuela, was signed into baseball’s minor leagues. His contract was for $13,000, but the money was hardly what excited Miguel.
“All I wanted was a plane ticket and put me in the Dominican and leave the rest up to me,” he recalls.
But being away from home, he quickly found that it wasn’t easy. He was fending for himself far from his family, and he wasn’t playing his best ball. There were times, he remembers, when he thought of quitting. But Miguel found the willpower to stick around, and in doing so, he learned a lesson that he carried with him all the way to the World Series.
“I was not the most talented guy,” he says. “I really worked hard. I put in a lot of work and I got better. He told himself “I got to be really strong mentally… there’s one way that you’re going to survive, and it’s competing. They’re good, but they’re not better than you and you’re not better than them. You’ve just got to beat them someway or the other, and it’s competing.”
On this episode of the Working For a Dream Podcast, Patrick and Miguel talk about how he hustled in his way to becoming a two-time MLB All-Star, how it felt hitting a Grand Slam in the NLCS (with a back injury to boot), and how he set (and achieved!) his three main goals for coming to the U.S.
What You’ll Learn:
- Why Miguel believes he “plays the game of failure” — and is glad he does
- How he approaches being retired at 37
- What he’s doing to support young baseball players in Colombia through the Miguel Montero Academy
- And much more!
Favorite Quote:
“It was a grind but it was a good grind, because you love what you do. When you start thinking ‘this is a job,’ that baseball is a job, that’s when everything starts falling apart because the passion stops. It’s about playing with passion and not even worrying about the money you want to make, because in the end if you play good, the money’s gonna be there, as long as you just enjoy what you’re doing and play well.”
— Miguel Montero
How to Get Involved:
Connect with Miguel:
Miguel Montero Academy
Connect with Patrick: