Jonny Gomes Devastated After Learning He Won't Be Joining Royals For White House Visit
BOSTON (CBS) -- Those hoping for a "Mr. Gomes Goes To Washington" sequel are in for a big disappointment.
Jonny Gomes, who played only 12 games with the Royals last season but won the second World Series ring of his career, will not join his former club when they visit the White House later this season.
Needless to say, Gomes isn't taking the snub very well. Perhaps the most devastating part is the fact he won't be able to break out the American flag jacket he was sporting when the Red Sox gave president Barack Obama a visit back in 2014.
"I've been sent down. I've been non-tendered, whatever. But this is probably the worst news of my professional baseball career," Gomes told Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal.
Gomes was not on the Royals' postseason roster for any of their three playoff series last year, but thought for sure he would be making the second celebratory trip to the nation's capital of his career. But it was a numbers game for Kansas City, and in the end, Gomes was crunched out.
From Rosenthal:
Royals general manager Dayton Moore said that the White House restricted the number of employees who could attend, and that ownership and the team's decision-makers established a policy to determine who would be eligible for the trip.
The Royals decided to include only players who were with the team for the entire season or members of their postseason roster. Gomes, who currently is a free agent after returning from an abbreviated stint in Japan, did not meet either criteria.
Gomes did get a chance to celebrate with his temporary teammates last fall, hijacking the Royals' post-World Series celebration and delivering some pretty wild speeches. But still, not getting to visit the White House with the defending champs is going to be pretty tough to recover from.
