The Kansas City Royals could still swing either way at the trade deadline.
Wednesday’s acquisition of Adam Frazier does make it seem as though the Royals are in a buying mood. But giving up Cam Devanney, a 28-year-old with no big-league experience, doesn’t commit the Royals to going all-in.
Trading starting pitcher Seth Lugo would be quite the opposite. It would be a signal that the Royals are just about ready to wave the white flag. And seeing as they’re currently 4 1/2 games out of the Wild Card picture, it would probably require them to tank for a week and a half coming out of the All-Star break.
There are still plenty of people, though, who think Lugo could be traded. It’s not unreasonable, because the Royals are a sub-.500 team and the righty, who finished second in the Cy Young Award last season, is likely to hit free agency.
During a recent livestream, Bleacher Report’s Tyler Ward brought up a potential trade destination for the Royals that would make for a lot of angry Kansas City natives: the New York Yankees.
“The New York Yankees make a lot of sense for Lugo there, should he go back to another big market, a market that he thrived in as a New York Metropolitan” Ward said.
Lugo has a 2.67 ERA in 17 starts this season, with 88 strikeouts in 101 innings. He’s one of the craftiest starters in the league, and though he’ll be 36 next season, he’s sure to get more than the $15 million salary he’d make if he opted to stay in Kansas City another year.
The Royals lost to the Yankees in the playoffs last year, and Lugo was on the mound for the defeat in Game 3. Seeing the 2024 All-Star in a Yankees uniform for the next few months would be a painful reality, but also a potential jumpstart to the Royals’ outlook in 2026.
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