Jonny Gomes snubbed for Kansas City Royals White House trip

WASHINGTON, July 18 (UPI) -- First it was the post-season roster and now it's the White House roster that Jonny Gomes has been left off.

Gomes, who was a member of the 2015 World Series champion Kansas City Royals, was heartbroken by the news that he was not invited to celebrate with his team Thursday at the White House.

"I've been sent down." Gomes told Fox Sports. "I've been non-tendered, whatever. But this is probably the worst news of my professional baseball career."

The White House restricted the number of guests for the event. The Royals front office decided to limit the number of players to those on the team for the entire season or on its postseason roster.

Gomes, 35, was traded to the Royals on August 31. He played in 12 games and was not on the Royals' postseason roster. He is currently a free agent.

Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal noted that each member invited from the team is allowed to bring one guest. Team vice presidents and assistant general managers will also attend the event. The team's physician, scouting director, professional scouting director, director of baseball operations and analytics, and Don Free, the producer/engineer of Royals' radio broadcasts, will not attend.

In May, Gomes told WEEI's Rob Bradford that he is not retiring, despite reports to the contrary. Gomes signed a one-year, $2 million deal with Japan's Rakuten Golden Eagles in February. He had four RBI and hit .167 last season.

Gomes wore a stars and stripes blazer when he met Barack Obama as a member of the 2013 Boston Red Sox, following a World Series title.

"I'm not trying to throw an egg on anyone's face," Gomes told Rosenthal. "But a lot of people are asking me, 'Hey, are you going to wear that American flag jacket? Is Obama going to ask you to make that speech again?' It would be pretty cool. This is probably going to be Obama's last championship team before he leaves office."