Royals 2004 Star Series: David DeJesus


Kansas City baseball in 2004 had many bright spots on a big league roster that couldn't find a way to put a winning season in the history books. Despite the Royals’ failure to put a winning team on the field, they still had several good players from Carlos Beltran to Johnny Damon. Those are the two best known stars at that time with the Royals. Although Zack Greinke was on the 2004 team, he didn't have the stats he has now in his career with the championship teams he's been a part of over the years. Kansas City had a few other good players on the team besides those three stars, including outfielder David DeJesus. DeJesus was originally drafted by the New York Mets in the 43rd round of the 1997 Major League Baseball Draft. Although the Mets selected DeJesus in 1997, the outfielder opted to attend college at Rutgers University delaying the start of his professional baseball career. Following the end of his college career, DeJesus was selected by the Royals in the fourth round of the 2000 MLB Draft. DeJesus made his big league debut in September 2003 with the Royals. Shortly after making his major league debut, he was given the starting nod in the outfield in 2004 when the team traded Carlos Beltran to the Houston Astros. The young outfielder ran away with the starting job with Kansas City. DeJesus's 2004 season was a year Royals fans and himself will never forget. According to Batoul Hammoud of Kings of Kauffman: " DeJesus had a 2004 slash of .287/.360/.402 with a .763 OPS and seven home runs, 39 RBIs, eight stolen bases, three triples and 104 hits in 96 games. He finished sixth in that season's American League Rookie of the Year Voting.”
Following the end of the 2004 season, DeJesus continued to be productive at the plate for Kansas City. DeJesus's productivity led him to possibly being a part of the Royals long-term plans. David DeJesus seemed like a good find for the boys in blue. The Royals in 2005 signed DeJesus to a very team friendly type of deal worth $13.8 million over the span of five years. DeJesus's tenure with Kansas City ended in four and a half years after the Royals traded the outfielder to the Oakland Athletics for two pitchers in Vin Mazaarro and Justin Mark's. Following the trade with Oakland, Royals former General Manager Dayton Moore told The Kansas City Star: "David is in the final year of his contract," general manager Dayton Moore said. "He’s a terrific performer for us. He’s our most consistent player offensively and defensively. He’s a terrific person, and I hope to be reunited with him someday." Wait. It’s coming. "We wish him nothing but the best," Moore added, "but, at the same time, for what we’re trying to do going forward, this type of deal fits for us. And it fits for Oakland as well." The DeJesus trade unfortunately was a big disappointment for both the Royals and the Athletics. During DeJesus's time with the green and gold, the outfielder posted a .240/.323/.376 batting line, hitting ten homers and 20 doubles. And the pair of pitchers the Royals got in return for DeJesus from Oakland were both big let downs. Mazzaro's two seasons in the midwest were ones everyone would love to forget. The right hander posted a 8.26 ERA in only seven games with only 10 strikeouts. Kansas City had hoped Mazaarro would have had a much better season, and the right hander didn't have the bounce back type of season the team had hoped. Mazaarro posted a disappointing 5.73 ERA in 44.1 innings pitched in 18 games. Following Mazaarro's disappointing time in a Royals uniform, the team hoped the second piece from the DeJesus deal would pan out. Marks didn't perform much better for Kansas City either. The left-hander made his Royals debut on April 17, 2014. Shortly after making his debut with Kansas City, the team designated Marks for assignment a little over two months later. The eight years in Kansas City for DeJesus were some of the best years of his career after playing with multiple teams throughout this career. In 2019, the Royals released their Hall of Fame ballot with DeJesus on the list; and, as expected, DeJesus didn't have a good enough career to be part of the Royals Hall of Fame. Despite not being a superstar, he definitely was a solid player on the 2004 Royals team.

Popular posts from this blog

Flashback Royals: Remembering a Murder Victim

Image
The Royals over the years have worn patches on their uniforms to remember tragic periods in American history including 9/11 and more. Kansas City in 2007 was stunned after learning that local teenager Kelsey Smith was abducted and murdered. The Royals wore light blue ribbons on their wrists in remembrance of the 18-year old after former manager Buddy Bell spoke to the Smith family.  Many Kansas Cityians remember the Kelsey Smith case well after the story of her abduction hit the local media and national media. On June 2, Smith was shopping at her local Target in Overland Park, KS looking for a picture frame for her boyfriend John Biersmith. While at Target, Smith's killer followed her throughout the store after noticing her at the jewelry counter. While Smith was in the checkout line, her abductor ran to his vehicle to grab his gun and waited for her to leave the store to grab her. The 18-year old was unable to fight off the kidnapper and was forced into her vehicle and...
Read more

Flashback Royals: The murder at the pool

Image
Self-defense is more important now than ever, and teams like the Royals are promoting it through various events. In 2008, the Royals held a self-defense class called T.A.K.E. to support The Ali Kemp Educational Foundation and honor Ali Kemp's life. Similarly, the Kelsey Smith Foundation, named after a girl abducted at a Target in Kansas in 2007, also focuses on teaching self-defense. The Royals later honored Kelsey Smith's memory as well. Ali Kemp's murder in 2002 had a profound impact on the Kansas City metro area. At 19, Ali was working as a lifeguard in Leawood, Kansas, during the summer. Her father believed it was a safe job: "It was a wonderful job, a neighborhood pool. And you would think the safest place in the world." However, her shift on that fateful day turned tragic. Around 3 p.m., Ali called a friend for company, but the friend missed the call. Shortly after, Laurel Vine, another friend, arrived at the pool and saw a man leaving. Thinking ...
Read more

Royals small connections to US Presidents

Image
The state of Kansas and the Kansas City metro have several connections to US Presidents, such as the 33rd President Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower. Although both Kansas and Kansas City have connections to the late Presidents, none of Kansas City's professional baseball teams such as the Monarchs, Athletics, or the Royals had the chance to meet either of them. However, former Royals manager Ned Yost has been to the White House more than once. Yost has met five US Presidents during his time in baseball. The former manager's first interaction with a President was with 39th President Jimmy Carter while living just outside of Atlanta. Yost said the 39th President attended games regularly: "Jimmy used to come a lot to the Braves games, and you could walk down the tunnel going to the dugout when Jimmy was there because Secret Service guys were all outside his little room they had for him and I’d waltz right in there and go sit down,” Yost said. “Him and Rosa...
Read more