Report: Mariners’ Jesus Montero involved in altercation with scout

Mariners farmhand Jesus Montero reportedly had to be restrained Thursday night during a heated altercation that involved a heckling scout and an ice-cream sandwich.

According to Tyler Maun of MiLB.com, Montero is on a rehab assignment with Single-A Everett and was coaching first base during a game in Boise when he became upset with a Mariners crosschecker – which is a type of scout – who was sitting in the stands.

Per Maun:

“Montero was coaching first base, and at the end of an inning, the unidentified crosschecker yelled at him to hustle off the field, according to Boise official scorer Liza Safford. Montero then headed to the AquaSox dugout on the third-base side.

“According to a game offical [sic], the crosschecker then ordered an ice cream sandwich and had it sent to Montero in the dugout, escalating the confrontation further. The official said Montero – who arrived at Mariners Spring Training 40 pounds overweight this season – approached the stands with a bat while screaming profanities and threw the sandwich at the crosschecker. Montero had to be pulled back from the stands by Everett pitching coach Nasusel Cabrera, Safford said.”

Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik told The Seattle Times that the team is aware of the incident but declined further comment.

While humorous, the incident is another inglorious moment in Montero’s career with the Mariners. Acquired in a trade with the Yankees in 2012, Montero, 24, had a strong first season in Seattle, hitting .260 with 15 home runs and 62 RBIs. But since then he has played in just 35 games with the big-league club, served a 50-game suspension for performance-enhancing drugs and then showed up to spring training severely overweight.