Royals’ Adalberto Mondesi wastes little time getting into the swing of spring
Kansas City Royals shortstop Adalberto Mondesi made his first appearance in a Cactus League this spring on Friday against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Mondesi didn’t play in the first five spring training games because of a foot ailment, but he started at shortstop, batted second behind Whit Merrifield and played three innings in the field of the Royals’ 7-5 loss to the Dodgers at Surprise Stadium in Arizona.
Mondesi lined out to first base in his first at-bat against Dodgers star pitcher Clayton Kershaw in the first inning, and he hit an RBI double over the head of Dodgers star right fielder Mookie Betts in the third before top prospect Bobby Witt Jr. entered the game as a pinch runner.
Mondesi, 25, hadn’t played in a Cactus League game in Arizona since 2019. Prior to the 2020 season, he spent the offseason rehabbing following shoulder surgery.
He didn’t play in a spring training game before camps were suspended because of the pandemic.
“I was able to do pretty much everything normal back home, so I was working regularly like if we were here,” Mondesi said of this winter. “Just the last week (getting hit in the foot) happened when it happened. It’s crazy, but (the offseason was) normal, doing everything, feels normal with my shoulder.”
Through his first 30 games of last year, Mondesi struggled mightily and slashed .213/.234/.278.
In his final 29 games, Mondesi exploded for a slash line of .297/.350/.550, with six home runs, 20 RBIs, 23 runs scored and 17 stolen bases.
The Royals hope to see similar production to what he showed late in the season.
“I just want to be healthy and win some games,” Mondesi said of his goals for this season. “I know if that happens, we’re going to be good. If I’m healthy and I can help the team. If I do my part, I know everything is going to be good.”
A switch-hitting native of the Dominican Republic, Mondesi ranks among the fastest players in the majors in sprint speed according to MLB Statcast data. He led the majors with 24 stolen bases last season.
“I mean, first day out and he does exactly what we hoped he would do — man on second base and he smashes a ball to first,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “... To see him connect like he did to right and then watch him run. You could tell there’s probably another gear in there, but I thought he looked good running.”
Michael A. Taylor hit a home run, a double and had two RBIs, while Kelvin Gutierrez tripled. Nick Pratto, Merrifield and Mondesi each hit doubles.
Matheny said left-handed pitcher Kris Bubic, originally slated to pitch behind Keller, had been pushed back in order to let Jackson Kowar throw a scheduled multiple-inning outing.
Keller’s debut
Starting pitcher Brad Keller made his first appearance in a Cactus League game this year. He pitched in a simulated setting on the field at Surprise Stadium after the six-inning spring opener against the Texas Rangers last weekend.
Keller allowed a run on four hits and two walks in three innings.
Keller got an inning-ending double play on a slow roller in front of the plate with the bases loaded and one out in the first inning. Catcher Salvador Perez picked up the ball, stepped on home plate and threw to first base in time to get the batter Will Smith.
Chris Taylor doubled to lead-off the second inning against Keller, and he scored on a single deflected off Royals first baseman Carlos Santana.
“I had a little bit of spiked adrenaline there, especially in the first inning,” Keller said. “I was just trying to settle down a little bit. It was definitely awesome to hear people in the stands again, hear some buzz, hearing some heckling and stuff like that. It was a lot of fun.”
Merrifield mic’d up
Merrifield joined the ESPN broadcast team of Jessica Mendoza and Dave Flemming at the start of the game. Merrifield brought his phone with him to right field in his back pocket and used earbuds to carry out the conversation while playing.
The Royals All-Star and two-time MLB hits leader discussed a range of topics including rooming with Keller in spring training, the influence of outfield coach and first base coach Rusty Kuntz and teammate Hunter Dozier’s new contract extension meaning he’ll pick up more dinner tabs.
One of Merrifield’s gems included his description of Keller as 25 going on 18. He also declared Joe’s Kansas City Bar-B-Que his favorite local food spot when asked by Mendoza.
While on the call, Merrifield made a catch while charging a ball in shallow right field. In the bottom of the first, Merrifield also doubled down into the left field corner while on the phone. At the end of the inning, he said, “A couple more workouts that will be a homer.”
Testing results
MLB and the MLBPA announced the latest results from the league-wide COVID-19 testing on Friday.
Of the 81 individuals who underwent intake testing this week, there were no new positive results. Total intake testing thus far has yielded 15 positive results (12 players, three staff members) out of 5,317 tests (0.3 percent positive rate).
There were five new positive results (all players) out of the 13,718 weekly monitoring tests (a 0.04 percent positive rate). Overall to this point in the spring season, there have been 10 positive monitoring results (seven players, three staff members) in 29,224 tests (a 0.03 percent positive rate).
Of the total 34,541 tests conducted, there have been 25 positive results (19 players, six staff members) for a 0.07 percent positive rate. Sixteen MLB clubs have had a positive result since the start of intake screening.
