Why Adalberto Mondesi could be playing into a big contract extension from the Royals
Adalberto Mondesi’s bat caught the fastball on the barrel and the mechanics of a Major League Baseball game changed immediately. The ball went 104 miles per hour off his bat. That was actually the softest contact of his three hits, but the ball still zoomed more than 400 feet off the centerfield wall.
Byron Buxton misplayed the ball, but even so, Mondesi — who didn’t even run hard until he was more than halfway to first base — zipped around the bases in 15.4 seconds. It was so fast there was not even a throw to challenge his inside-the-park home run.
The Royals lost to the Twins 5-4 in 10 innings at Kauffman Stadium on Tuesday. The bullpen blew another lead. There was some bad luck on batted balls, but the relievers’ collective failure torpedoed last season and might do the same again. These are the pitfalls of rebuilding baseball teams. We will talk more about this as the season goes on.
But Mondesi is becoming a daily event now. Four games in and he has seven hits already, all but two for extra bases. These are early days, but after a half-season breakout last year this is what it looks like when a prospect turns into a star.
“He’s really coming into his own,” Royals manager Ned Yost said.
Which means the franchise is going to have another decision to make — when, how, and how much money should they offer Mondesi in a contract extension?
This Royals season is, has always been — and will always be — about the future. We know that. We’ve known that. Much of the rest of baseball is showing similar thinking. Look around.
The White Sox signed 22-year-old Eloy Jimenez to six years and $43 million before his big-league debut.
The Braves signed 21-year-old outfielder Ronald Acuna to eight years and $100 million after just one season.
The Royals, if this season goes the way they hope, will sign at least one young star to a rich contract extension in the next year. This is the trend across baseball, and it’s one that should benefit the Royals.
Including the Cardinals’ Paul DeJong, the Phillies’ Scott Kingery and the Rays’ Brandon Lowe, five teams have signed five players with a season or less of service time to contract extensions in the last year.
The Royals check a lot of boxes here. Their payroll is down and figures to drop again next year, so they have financial flexibility. Theirs is a long-term build, and they will always struggle to sign major free agents, so they’re motivated. Their front office’s history includes early long-term extensions for Joakim Soria, Sal Perez and Yordano Ventura, so they have comfort with the process.
And they employ three specific high-ceiling, low-service time talents worth consideration, so they have the opportunity.
“We’ve had success signing some of our young and talented players to long-term contracts,” Royals general manager Dayton Moore said. “It’s a strategy that’s a focus of ours and can be a win-win for everybody.”
Mondesi, Brad Keller, and Jakob Junis (and in that order) will merit internal discussion relatively soon. Each has less than two years of service time. Each is eligible for salary arbitration for the 2021 season, and remains under club control until 2024.
Moore never talks publicly about negotiations, but using the club’s history and thought processes as a guide we can predict how this will go.
Moore and his assistants will not discuss any contract possibilities for at least a few months, and perhaps not until the offseason. Moore talks often of players who “play with an innocence,” and is hyper-conscious of how contract talks can affect perspectives.
On a more practical level, waiting means a more substantial medical evaluation can be made. Mondesi has had some minor injuries and hasn’t played more than 127 games in a professional season. Keller is in his first full season as a big-league starter. Junis spent most of last July on the disabled list.
These are small concerns, but without the pressure of a deadline each could be answered with more certainty after the 2019 season.
Mondesi is the most interesting case, for a lot of reasons, and the one who would be in line for the most money.
Acuna won the National League’s Rookie of the Year award after hitting .293 with 26 homers and a .917 on-base-plus-slugging percentage in 487 plate appearances last year. His deal includes two club options that could push that contract to 10 years and would be the closest to a template for the Royals and Mondesi.
Mondesi’s deal would almost certainly be shorter. He’s two years older than Acuna and the for years the Royals have been particularly uncomfortable with long contracts.
But a deal for six years and $80 million or so with a club option or two might have positives for each side.
Mondesi would achieve generational wealth, lock in long-term security with an organization that’s supported him, and assuming health and production, he’d be in line for at least one more big contract.
The Royals would never be in line for a high-ceiling talent like Mondesi in free agency. This would lock down a homegrown star at a premium position, the kind of franchise-molding moment the Royals had in signing Zack Greinke and Perez.
Both sides, importantly, might also benefit from the financial structure. If the Royals are willing to give Mondesi an upfront payment while payrolls are dropping — Jimenez’s deal included a $5 million signing bonus, for instance — they could maintain even more flexibility later.
Rebuilding a major-league baseball team requires poise and smarts with many moving parts. The Royals hope to move toward a better future this season by exposing existing players to the challenges of the big leagues and transitioning more from the minors as the season progresses.
Immediate results are not yet as important a development, and part of that will mean a particularly close look at who might be worth a long-term investment.
Mondesi could be the first, in a big contract that would benefit both player and team.
This story was originally published April 3, 2019 at 12:49 AM.