CHICAGO — Kansas City Royals shortstop Adalberto Mondesi’s season is in jeopardy after tests revealed a torn anterior cruciate ligament of his left knee on Thursday.
The 26-year-old Mondesi, who only played 35 games in 2021 due to left hamstring and left oblique injuries, started 14 of 15 games.
“It’s heartbreaking,” said infielder Nicky Lopez.
An MRI Thursday showed the tear. Mondesi, who hit .140 (7 of 50) in five tries with five stolen bases, suffered the injury in an attempted pickoff game Tuesday night against the Chicago White Sox.
Lopez, who started 141 games at shortstop in 2021, is likely to move from second base. Bobby Witt Jr. is also a possibility, but manager Mike Matheny indicated his prized rookie is adjusting to third base.
“I expect that [at shortstop] probably every single day,” Lopez said. “Until I hear otherwise.”
The versatile Whit Merrifield is expected to move to second base from right field.
“We also know that Nicky Lopez played a Gold Glove-caliber shortstop last year, as did Whit Merrifield at second base,” Matheny said. “There are options.”
Matheny initially believed Mondesi, who stole 24 bases in 60 games in the 2020 season, avoided a serious injury after Tuesday’s game. But the Royals’ clubhouse was rocked on Thursday as further tests revealed the seriousness of the injury.
“You can tell our dressing room took a hit,” Lopez said.[Mondesi] keeps things to himself but he’s one of the nicer guys on the team. He’s so genuine, a great teammate. You can’t hear anything coming out of his mouth. He is very positive.
“And I can speak for a lot of people on the team that our hearts break for him because it’s so unfortunate.”
Outfielder Kyle Isbel was promoted from Triple-A Omaha, where he was 5-on-20 with a home run and four RBIs.