The last time Adalberto Mondesí got a hit in the Dominican Winter League, he was wearing a Licey uniform and Donald Trump had just won his first election. That was the 2016-17 season. On Friday, October 17, 2026 — 3,303 days later — Mondesí stepped into the batter’s box for the Águilas Cibaeñas against the Toros del Este at Estadio Cibao in Santiago and went 3-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI. The Águilas lost 5-3, but Mondesí was the story of the night.
Nine years and a rebuilt knee
Mondesí is 31 years old and had spent four full years away from competitive baseball. His last MLB appearance came on April 26, 2022, with the Kansas City Royals — the only big-league organization he ever played for. Days after that game, he tore the ACL in his left knee, went under the knife, and began a rehabilitation that stretched far longer than anyone anticipated.
The comeback was gradual. Mondesí joined the Águilas’ workouts on September 22, 2026, and was introduced as one of the team’s featured additions alongside Cristopher Morel, Jasson Domínguez, and Luis Liberato. His father, Raúl Mondesí — himself an MLB star and a former Águilas champion — didn’t hide what it meant to watch his son sign with Santiago: «It fills me with pride to see him on the team I belonged to,» he said in the club’s official announcement.
What he left behind in MLB
To appreciate the weight of this comeback, you have to look at the career that was cut short. In seven seasons with the Royals, Mondesí posted a .244 average, 38 home runs, 157 RBI, and 133 stolen bases in 1,273 at-bats. He led the American League in stolen bases in 2020 — the pandemic-shortened 60-game season — and was part of Kansas City’s 2015 World Series championship. He also holds a record that’s almost impossible to take away: he’s the first player in modern MLB history to make his big-league debut directly in the World Series, on October 30, 2015, against the New York Mets.
The ACL tear hit when he was 27 and still in what should have been his prime years.
From Licey blue to Águilas red
In LIDOM, Mondesí had always worn Licey colors — the Águilas’ fiercest rival. He hit .296 in 8 games during the 2015-16 season, then slipped to .125 in just 4 games (2-for-16) in 2016-17. Coming back in an Águilas uniform, in Santiago, isn’t just a return to baseball — it’s crossing to the other side of one of the island’s most storied rivalries.
One night down, a whole season to go
Friday’s game doesn’t answer every question, but it answers one. Going 3-for-4 with two doubles in the second game of the season — the 73rd edition of LIDOM, which also debuted a robot umpire (ABS) system this year — is a statement that the body is responding. The Águilas opened the tournament 0-2, so the team result wasn’t what they wanted, but Mondesí did everything he could in his at-bats.
There are a lot of nights left before anyone can say whether this Mondesí is the one from 2020. But the last LIDOM season anyone saw him, he hit .125 and disappeared for nine years. On Friday he went 3-for-4. Something got rebuilt in there.
