Alex Cora: Aldaberto Mondesí is ‘Xander-esque’ in size and strength
New Red Sox infielder Adalberto Mondesi surprised his new manager at spring training. Alex Cora met with the media on Tuesday morning and he raved about Mondesi’s size.
“Wait till you see him,” Cora said here at the JetBlue Park complex Tuesday. “I thought he was like smaller. But he’s like Xander-esque as far as like tall, strong, big legs.”
The 27-year-old infielder is recovering from ACL surgery he underwent last May. Mondesi was limited to just 15 games last season with the Royals.
Related: Alex Cora on Christian Arroyo: ‘He’s our second baseman as of now’
Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom has been non-committal on whether Mondesi would be ready for the start of the regular season.
Bloom said that the Mondesi being ready for Opening Day was considered best-case scenario for the club.
“There’s still a chance... That’s not something I would bet on,” Bloom said. “But that’s no different from when acquired him. We said there was a possibility. On one hand, he’s such a good athlete that you don’t want to put anything past him in terms of once he really gets going and gets momentum, he could progress very quickly. On the other hand, because he’s such a dynamic athlete, we want to make sure he’s really ready so we and he can feel he’s in a position to just be fully unleashed when we do activate them.”
Once the regular season begins and Mondesi should see significant time at second base with Christian Arroyo.
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