Philly Sports Jabronis
By Todd Zolecki, Phillies.com
PHILADELPHIA — Everybody wants to know how David Montgomery is feeling these days. He said Friday he is doing much better.
Montgomery took a medical leave of absence as Phillies president in August, following jawbone cancer surgery in May. The news hit the organization hard as Montgomery is beloved by employees.
Pat Gillick took Montgomery’s place as interim president. Gillick is running the baseball side of the organization, while senior vice president of administration and operations Mike Stiles is running the business side.
“Next Wednesday, it’ll be six months since the surgery,” Montgomery said Friday afternoon at Loews Philadelphia Hotel, where he spoke at a luncheon celebrating the Phillies’ 30-year relationship with the Philadelphia chapter of the ALS Association. “The good news is my prognosis is excellent. The chemo and radiation I did was preventative. I’ve basically kind of been dismissed by doctors. I have periodic PET scans. … Hopefully I’ll have that 45th season.”
Montgomery has been with the Phillies since 1971, becoming team president in 1997, making this season his 44th with the organization. He said he expects to return to his post as president at some point.
“Oh yeah,” he said.
It remains uncertain if and when it will happen.
“It’s not entirely my call,” he said. “The disease has shifted now. I think I’m overloved and a little bit overprotected.”
Asked what he thinks about the Phillies’ offseason, he said, “We’re rebuilding, but we have some people that are still going to be part of it. I think our middle infielders [Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley] are both 10-and-5 [full no-trade rights] and both want to stay here. I have more optimism about next year.”
