Charlie Montoyo: Getting the Call

In the world of minor league baseball, eight years is a long time to stay in one place. Players can get signed, promoted and released, while managers and coaches can have the same fate. Even members of the front office change yearly, with interns taking jobs with new teams, while others move across the country for a better job title.

But Charlie Montoyo, the new third base coach for the Tampa Bay Rays, called Durham home every April through September for eight straight seasons as manager of the Bulls, leaving a profound mark on just about everyone he met while leading Minor League Baseball's most storied franchise.

That's one of the reasons what happened in Durham from 2007 to 2014 was so special. Another reason was the seven division titles. Another was the two Governors' Cup championships. Another was the 2009 Triple-A National Title.

Then there were a pair of International League Manager of the Year awards. On two occasions he managed the IL All-Star Team. And of course, there's the fact he has the most wins (633) in franchise history.

"Going season after season; it's not easy to win at that level, and we kept winning," Montoyo said. "There's no way I can say in words how great my time has been (in Durham)."

On the field there's no denying what the 50-year-old meant to the Bulls organization over eight seasons, finally departing the Triple-A franchise when he was promoted to the Tampa Bay Rays coaching staff under first-year manager Kevin Cash. It was what the manager meant to everyone off the field - from fans to the front office and everyone in between - that made him the revered icon he is in The Triangle.

"Charlie became a very close friend of mine over his tenure here in Durham," Bulls General Manager Mike Birling said. "The class with which he represented himself was unparalleled, and I know he set a great example not just for the teams we fielded, but for each member of our staff in the front office."

Charlie, as he was affectionately known around the stadium, was a popular figure at Durham Bulls Athletic Park with more than just fans and employees though, creating strong relationships with his players. The Puerto Rican native made a point of never letting a player go more than two days without playing, because he emphasized sending players to the major leagues instead of wins and losses.

"One of the things I'm going to miss the most is telling guys they're going to the big leagues, because you're the one that gets to tell them their dream is coming true," Charlie said.

Over eight seasons the skipper sent countless players to Tampa Bay, and said he enjoyed each call-up because each was different. In 2014, he sent 14 Bulls to the Rays, including five guys for the first time. Additionally, the former manager took pride in finding creative ways of telling his players they were getting promoted.

In April of 2014 he called lefty reliever C.J. Riefenhauser from the car to inform him of his first promotion, while Charlie's wife and two children were in the car with him on speakerphone. Two months later, he got a call from the Rays front office after midnight informing him closer Kirby Yates needed to be in Tampa Bay the following day. Charlie, along with former pitching coach Neil Allen (now of the Minnesota Twins), called Yates to tell him there was too much noise coming from his apartment, and asked for his apartment number. Moments later the pair was standing in Yates' doorway, telling him he needed to pack his bags.

Then a week before Christmas Charlie got another call from the Rays, but this phone call had a different message. On the other end of the line was Cash, telling him he wanted Charlie to coach third base in the big leagues. From there Charlie did what many of his young players do, calling his wife and parents to tell them the good news.

The next few days were a whirlwind for a man who, come April, will take the field at the Major League level for the first time since Sept. 29, 1993, when he went 1-for-3 with a double and two RBIs for the Montreal Expos, in what would be the last of his four-game Major League playing career. After news of his promotion broke, his phone never stopped ringing, receiving over 500 congratulatory messages in addition to dozens of well-wishes from fans via social media.

"The good thing about this is how excited my family and friends and players have been, and all the nice notes I've received," he said. "It's been great. I've been taking my time answering all the messages because I appreciate it. I don't take it for granted. I see a message, but I don't respond right away. I take my time, I read it and then I reply because I appreciate it. It's been pretty cool."  

While he'll no longer have the chance to let players know they're heading to "The Show", one of the new aspects of his job which he's looking forward to will be the same as his entire coaching career to this point.

"The good thing about the Rays is they have a lot of young guys, so I'm still going to be working with younger guys," he said. "That's one of the best parts of being a minor league coach, working with younger players. At the big league level we have a lot of young guys so that's not going to stop."

If anyone is familiar working with young players, it's Charlie. After retiring from playing following the 1996 season, he was hired by Tampa Bay as a minor league manager that fall. Since retiring from playing he has spent each of the past 18 seasons as a manager in the Rays organization, heading teams at every classification in the system.

"I've always been a Ray, and now to be with the big league team, it's just pretty exciting," he said. "With my loyalty to the Rays and now to be with the big league team, it's just awesome. I'm going to do everything I can to help Kevin and everybody else do their jobs."

Charlie looks forward to his new challenge, and is excited to fit in to a mixed group of coaches. Joining him will be former Bull and Ray Rocco Baldelli as first base coach, making his coaching debut after previously working in the front office. The rest of the staff remains intact though, all under the eye of the rookie manager Cash.

"Besides me and Rocco who are there for the first time, we have other coaches who are experienced and they've been there for a while now," Charlie said. "Whatever Kevin tells me to do, that's what I'm going to do to make his job easier."

The new Rays manager and his third base coach do have some history, as Cash was a member of the Rays organization in 2005 and 2006, appearing in 121 games for the Bulls in the last two seasons the franchise spent without its legendary manager. Charlie recalls throwing batting practice to Cash, and seeing him around the Spring Training complex.

In the nine seasons that have passed since the two spent February and March working out at the same facility, Cash went on to play for four more organizations before retiring after the 2011 campaign. In 2012 he was a scout for the Toronto Blue Jays, before joining the Cleveland Indians as bullpen coach for the 2013 and 2014 seasons.

Charlie though, spent the 2006 campaign with Double-A Montgomery before becoming Mr. Consistent for the Bulls and across the International League. Through the 2014 season, only Scranton/Wilkes-Barre skipper Dave Miley held his position as long as Charlie, as each joined the league in 2007 before going on to square off two times in the Governors' Cup final. Since 2007 no IL manager has more wins or captured as many division titles, while the skipper set the league record for Governors' Cup berths with six.

It's no wonder why, then, Charlie has such fond memories of Durham. But it's clear what will stay with him as he embarks on his major league coaching career aren't just recollections of championships and champagne showers, but the relationships he made over his tenure.

"Relationships are everything in this business," Charlie said in July of 2014, days after passing close friend Bill Evers for first place on the Bulls' managerial all-time wins list.

And it's not hard to believe him. The walls of the office he called home at Durham Bulls Athletic Park for eight seasons are covered in framed photos. There are photos of him with his family, former players, Rays personnel and even members of the Bulls gameday staff. To Charlie, Durham was a second home for him and his family, and it's a place he'll think of fondly for a long time.

"I love the area to begin with; that's one place I would love to live someday," he said. "The fans, the people, it's just a great area. It was just a great place to work. It's bittersweet to leave a place like that with all the friendships I have there."

The "bittersweet" departure is a sentiment shared by many. Fans across The Triangle showed their appreciation for him through social media, garnering responses such as, "Happy for Charlie Montoyo but sad for Durham Bulls fans," and, "We'll miss you at the DBAP Charlie!! Thanks, and good luck!!"

"Charlie was such a great part of this organization," Birling said. "We couldn't be happier that a man of his character will take the next step in his career, but we're going to miss him at the DBAP."

When talking about Durham, Charlie's go-to quote has always been, "If you're going to be in the minor leagues, this is one of the best places to be."

And after an 18-year minor league managerial career, there might not be anyone who knows the minors better. But Charlie is finally getting an upgrade to the major leagues, and that's not a bad place to be either.