David DeJesus and the tepid reaction from the Face Books

The departed.

I hopped on to the Royals’ Facebook page before dinner, hoping to pick out a bunch of hilarious quotes from Royals fans who perhaps aren’t as attentive as you all. I figured they’d have some extremely mockable things to say about David DeJesus being traded. Remember how much fun it was to do that with the Podsednik trade?

But really, there wasn’t much. Some people were upset about losing DeJesus, the longest-tenured Royal and one of the most likable players this generation of Royals fans have known. They said they’d miss him. I agree completely with those sentiments. I love DeJesus, and think he was actually underrated by most KC fans. I would absolutely put him in the team Hall of Fame, no question.

Other fans thought… the return for DeJesus was small – a back-of-the-rotation starter in Vin Mazzaro, and a too-old-for-Single-A Justin Marks. DDJ played barely over half a season in 2010 but still accumulated 2.6 WAR (wins above replacement). That’s pretty darn good. You’d hope to get someone splashier in return for a player that valuable.

Still others pretty much reacted with a “meh.” They didn’t think losing DeJesus was that big a deal, because he never put up the power numbers you’d want from a corner outfielder. I guess I see that, although it ignores all the other ways DeJesus provided value – and lots of it – for the Royals. That’s OK, though. I sort of see these people’s point. Maybe I was expecting too much in return for the Jive-Ass D Dude.

Nobody had posted anything eye-poppingly stupid when I looked. While that’s a little bit disappointing, I appreciate the levelheadedness with which the masses seem to be approaching this deal (at least compared to the usual screaming). But I wonder: Does the lack of outrage actually just illustrate how much people undervalued DeJesus?

It’s hard to know. For my part, I’ll miss DeJesus, who was always genuinely nice to me and my little brother. And that time he hit a walkoff homer a few years ago will always still stay in my heart. But I’m going to reserve judgment on this trade until later in the offseason, when it is revealed what Dayton Moore intends to do with this now-vacant outfield spot.

Sure, DeJesus could have brought back more in July. He was a day away from being traded on the very day he smashed his thumb against the wall of Yankee Stadium. Today Moore was in a tricky situation, trying to trade a highly serviceable outfielder who happened to be hurt at just the wrong time. Who knows how he’s going to come back? It wasn’t as easy of a sell this week as it probably was in July, when DeJesus was healthy and putting up career numbers. But it’s November and he’s just coming off of surgery. That’s a vastly different trade situation. I’m not a big enough Moore-hater to think he bit at the very first deal that was placed on his desk.

The Royals did need a new starter for the back of the rotation since Brian Bannister became a free agent this morning. Vin Mazzaro is that, and while his numbers haven’t been spectacular, he still has some gifts. His repertoire features a slider that I’ve been wowed by in person when he nearly threw a no-no against Omaha a few years back. He’s young – barely older than me – so I’m hanging on to hope that Bob “Troy” McClure can work with him.

Ask me again how I feel about this trade later. If it’s a setup to our shared nightmare – Jeff Francoeur finally in a Royals uniform – I’ll come back to this post and spit on the whole thing. But there are a hundred other possibilities, and I’m willing to give Moore a chance to actually carry out his plan before I foam at the mouth about how terrible this whole thing is.

Related posts:

1. Countdown to Opening Day: 13 DeJesus homers
2. The one where I sympathize with the ill DeJesus
3. Crisp to the Royals: My immediate reaction