And here I thought Raul Mondesi disappeared from the face of the Earth after putting in 155 atrocious plate appearances for the Braves in 2005:
When Raul Mondesi left baseball after 13 seasons as a major league outfielder, he returned to his dusty, overcrowded and impoverished hometown determined to make a difference.
And both of the Dominican Republic’s main political parties were only too happy to assist, with one helping him twice win election to the country’s national Chamber of Deputies and another luring him away to run for mayor of the country’s sixth-largest city.
Sadly, it seems that Mondesi is something of an empty vessel politically, with those quoted in the article questioning his intellect and grasp of the issues and noting that he has never sponsored any substantive legislation. Basically, his political career is based almost purely on name recognition and fame as a local-born ballplayer.
Glad that doesn’t happen as often here. If it did, I’m pretty sure it would mean that Paul O’Neill or Pat Borders would be the mayor of my town, and I don’t like either of those dudes.