On Thursday, the Kansas City Royals made one of the first trades before Monday’s trade deadline, sending outfielder Brett Phillips to the Tampa Bay Rays for infielder Lucius Fox. This trade made sense for the Royals with all of the depth in the outfield, leading to Phillips not having a defined role with the team.
For the trade deadline this year, teams can only trade players on their 60-man player pool. However, clubs can include players to be named later in trades, but scouts have not been permitted at games, meaning that assessments of potential trade prospects are based on video and data.
Should the Royals make additional deals to move expiring contracts or do they stay put with the shortened season?
The Royals have two bullpen pieces that have been gaining traction and trade value; Greg Holland and Trevor Rosenthal. On the year, Holland has a 2-0 record with a 3.38 ERA in 16 innings pitched. Rosenthal has a 3.29 ERA and seven saves over 13.3 innings pitched this season while possessing 100-mph heaters on the mound. The Royals bullpen has been solid this year and contending teams are interested in Holland and Rosenthal, especially as both are on cheap, expiring contracts.
However, the Royals should keep both Holland and Rosenthal and stay put at the deadline. Rosenthal, the Lee’s Summit, Missouri native, has said that he wants to be with the Royals, aiding the chances of re-signing him after this season.
The only case where the Royals might move on from Rosenthal or Holland is if there is an offer to acquire a top prospect from a contender that is desperate for relief help. However, that likely is not happening. They should not be making deals just to make deals and sell. If the Royals can get hot and start a winning streak, they could sneak into the playoff this year with the extended format.
Young Talent Coming Soon
The Royals have a lot of young talent in the minors, including Bobby Witt, Asa Lacy, Jackson Kowar, Daniel Tillo, and Daniel Lynch. The plan has been for the Royals to be competitive and contending for the playoffs in 2021 or 2022 with some of the listed prospects in the big leagues. By staying put, the Royals would set themselves up with a strong core and start adding top prospects, such as Witt, Lacy, and Lynch in the next couple of seasons.
Trading Phillips made sense as he didn’t have a set role on the team and the minors have a ton of outfield prospects. However, that should be the only trade the Royals make this year as they look to continue to build for the future.
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