Royals fans have a wide range of reactions to the trade of Adalberto Mondesi

Pete Grathoff
·4 min read
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For three consecutive years in the 2010s, Adalberto Mondesi was considered one of the top 50 prospects in all of baseball by MLB.com, Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus.

Mondesi made his major league debut at age 20 in the game’s biggest showcase: the World Series in 2015.

The following year, Mondesi joined the Royals in the regular-season. But over the next seven years, Mondesi never played more than 102 games in a season as he dealt with a multitude of injuries.

Mondesi’s best season in the majors was the shortest in MLB history. In 2020, Mondesi led the American League in stolen bases and played in all but one of the Royals’ 60 games during the COVID-shortened season.

On Tuesday, the Royals traded Mondesi to the Boston Red Sox for relief pitcher Josh Taylor, a left-handed reliever who missed all of the 2022 season because of a back injury.

Mondesi, now 27, heads to Beantown with a career average of .244 and a strikeout percentage of 30.7% — but still young enough to make good on the promise that enticed Royals fans for so many years.

I asked those fans on Twitter what they thought of the trade, and the responses varied greatly. Here’s what they said on Twitter and Reddit.

A fan wrote on Reddit: “We joked about this all last season.. he’s gonna be a rock star.. just not for us.”

“If he can finally stay healthy and produce the way he should… man I’m going to be so mad he couldn’t do it in KC,” another wrote.

“I know it’s unpopular but I liked mondesi,” a fan wrote on Reddit. “I know he can’t stay healthy but he was one of favorite players on the team”

A fan on Reddit ticked off these thoughts:

“A) He is never healthy

“B) Even when healthy he has never been remotely good at the plate

“C) he is a UFA at the end of the year

“How much do you think a severely injury prone, terrible hitting SS in his walk year is worth?”

“I was at the game where he cranked that 464 ft homerun against the red sox,” another shared. “Still the hardest hit ball I’ve ever seen in person Hope he’s able to put it together in boston”

A fan on Reddit wrote: “Really hate to hear that, on the level on Dansby (Swanson) leaving the Braves. Good luck Mondi, but I still can’t pull for Boston!”

Another shared this: “Anyone else find it odd that KC is trading Mondesi, AND a player to be named later, for a middle reliever who missed all of last season with a back issue?

“To be clear, I am fine moving on from Mondesi, but how does this deal require KC giving up someone else? If anything, the Sox should be on the hook for another player in the (very) unlikely scenario Mondesi blows up and hits his full potential.”