Do you remember back in 2011 when the Royals signed then Raul Mondesi Jr. out of the Dominican Republic? Mondesi signed a $2 million dollar signing bonus. After the Royals signed Mondesi, the Royals were saying he would be the next great Kansas City Royals shortstop. He was supposed to be Alcides Escobar but with more power at the plate. Other than that, I don’t see anything else Mondesi has to offer besides speed. You obviously need speed to play defense; but at shortstop, you need speed and a good arm. Mondesi has the speed but not the arm. Escobar had both of those things. While Mondesi might have more power at the plate than Escobar, it still doesn’t mean he’s a good hitter. Honestly, I don’t think he is as good as people say he is, or the Royals rushed him to the big leagues too quickly. His defense is my main problem. With Mondesi not having a great arm, I don’t think he should be playing shortstop in the big leagues. I have seen enough of Mondesi in a Royals uniform after five seasons. This doesn’t mean Mondesi couldn’t be a good player, just not in Kansas City. Some players need a change of scenery. I believe that is what Mondesi needs, a change of scenery. Remember, the Royals have bigtime prospect Bobby Witt Jr. who can play shortstop, but KC should not rush him to the bigs. The Royals already did that with Mondesi. Another problem Mondesi has is being able to stay healthy. Being only 25 years of age, I believe he has been put on the injured list way too many times in his young career. I believe at this point the Royals have two options with Mondesi. The first one is to move him to the outfield, but he doesn’t have a great arm which you obviously need to play in the outfield. He does have great speed which is a plus with the outfield at Kauffman Stadium. Who would play shortstop you might ask? Well, we have a few options. The first one is moving Nicky Lopez to shortstop. This would most likely move Whit Merrifield back to second base. If the Royals don’t do that, the second option would be to allow Humberto Arteaga to play shortstop on a daily basis. This would probably hurt the Royals offensively. The best option would bring in a free agent shortstop. I think the best free agent shortstop option for the Royals would be Jose Iglesias who currently plays for the Baltimore Orioles. This would most likely be a one-year deal. Here’s why I think Iglesias would fit the Royals in 2021. The obvious reason is the contract, and he can provide experience at the shortstop position until Bobby Witt Jr. is ready.
