Raul Mondesi rose from a small town in Dominican Republic to MLB Rookie of the Year in 1994 and was an All-star in 1995. He was one of the biggest Latin names in the game of baseball and one of the early pioneers of the explosion of Dominican players that have come to dominate MLB.
After a 13-year MLB career in which he played for the Dodgers, Blue Jays, Yankees, Diamondbacks, Pirates, Angels and Braves while hitting 271 home runs, Mondesi transitioned into politics and used his celebrity to return to San Cristobal, DR and win a six-year term as mayor beginning in 2010.
At the time, Mondesi was part of a growing trend in the Dominican Republic, that saw nearly 100 entertainers and sports figures — including another former Dodger, Juan Encarnacion, fellow ex-big-leaguers Melido Perez and Jose Rijo, and merenguero Sergio Vargas — run for a variety of national and local offices in the November primaries.
Raul Mondesi, who served as mayor in the D.R. from 2010-16, was sentenced to 8 years in prison on corruption chargeshttps://t.co/tMQAUYwAxM
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) September 21, 2017
Whatever good he intended to do has been washed away as Mondesi was sentenced to eight years in prison and fined 60 million pesos for corruption that happened while he served as the mayor of his hometown in the Dominican Republic.
Mondesi played for the Dodgers, Blue Jays, Yankees, Diamondbacks, Pirates, Angels and Braves throughout his career and he hit 271 home runs while batting .273.
Mondesi’s son, Raul Mondesi Jr. currently plays for the Kansas City Royals. When Mondesi became mayor, the town was filled with excitement and possibilities. He had the opportunity to really use his celebrity and respect to make some needed improvements and changes in his home town. Now he is just another weak perpetrator of abused power and corrupt politics.
