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While I was advocating for the Royals to be buyers, others were advocating for the Royals to be sellers. When all was said and done, the Royals had made three small “buy” moves and one large “sell” move that happened to also improve this year’s club. Let’s quickly review those trades:

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Cam Devanney for Adam Frazier

This one was widely panned, including by yours truly, and Frazier hasn’t made a huge impact by the numbers. Still the team has gone 10-8 since the trade against some very tough opponents. Devanney was immediately demoted back to AAA and hasn’t sniffed the bigs since.

Andrew Hoffmann for Randal Grichuk

The Royals needed a competent outfield bat and they got one. One of his top comps for this year on Baseball Savant is 2025 Salvador Perez. Like Salvy, he’s struggled with his true numbers lagging far behind some high-quality expected numbers. Hopefully, like Salvy, he can start reaching his potential sooner rather than later.

Freddy Fermin for Ryan Bergert and Steven Kolek

Freddy is a fan favorite and by far the best backup catcher in the league, In fact, he’s been starting for the Padres and doing well. That said, the Royals needed starting pitching and Bergert looked terrific in his Royals debut. Kolek was demoted to Omaha. He has one start down there where he allowed three runs in six innings but struck out four and walked none.

Evan Sisk and Callan Moss for Bailey Falter

Falter made one start and didn’t look so good. His next turn in the rotation has at least been pushed back and, if Lorenzen is healthy, may not occur again this season. The Royals’ coaching staff thinks they can help him refine his repertoire to be a more effective pitcher and he has some physical tools that are hard to teach such as elite extension that helps his pitches play up. If the team can improve the pitches that are being played up, he could become very good. Sisk has pitched two games for Pittsburgh’s AAA affiliate to a 3.38 ERA and Callan Moss is off to a hot start. If Falter doesn’t improve, this one could look unfortunate for the Royals.

Yunior Marte for Mike Yastrzemski

Marte still hasn’t debuted in the Giants organization, but Yaz has sparked the Royals’ lineup since joining KC while slashing .313/.294/.688/.982. He took over the leadoff spot on Wednesday night and Royals fans hope he’ll never leave it.

The Royals were clearly trying to thread a needle of improving a borderline playoff roster this season without sacrificing any of their future. But did they do as well as they could have, or did they leave some meat on the bone? You tell me!