Kansas City Royals Rumors: Howie Kendrick on the Trading Block

Sep 24, 2013; Anaheim, CA, USA; Los Angeles Angels second baseman Howie Kendrick (47) follows through on a solo home run in the first inning as Oakland Athletics catcher Derek Norris (36) watches at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Howie Kendrick is on the trading block and Kansas City could be his landing destination, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.

From the piece:

"It looks more and more like Kendrick will be involved in a deal that would land the Angels some pitching or prospects. The Royals seem like a good fit as they attempt to solve their second base issue, and Kendrick would be a nice bat in that lineup. But what would the Royals give up?"

The Royals were rumored to have expressed interest in Kendrick before the trading deadline this past July, but were unable to come up with a deal because Kendrick listed the Royals on his no-trade list. Whether or not the Royals will remain one of those teams is unknown.

Should the Royals be able to land Kendrick, there is no question he would be a tremendous upgrade at second base. Kendrick hit .292/.335/.429 with 13 home runs and 21 doubles for the Angels this past season. He is a solid defensive second baseman who made an All-Star game in 2011.

At age 30 next season, Kendrick will be owed $9.35 and $9.5 million over the next two seasons.

The question now is what would the Royals give up for Kendrick? Los Angeles is looking for young arms for both their rotation and bullpen, some thing Royals have to give up. While it is unknown immediately, it is assumed Los Angeles wants those young pitchers to be at or near Major League ready. This means Danny Duffy, Yordano Ventura, or Kyle Zimmer would have to be involved in a trade for Kendrick. Would that be worth it?

Also keep in mind that the Royals have to find replacements in their rotation for Ervin Santana and Bruce Chen. Duffy is already penciled into the 2014 rotation, so trading him would mean the Royals would have to find three new starters for 2014 if they cannot re-sign Santana and Chen.

However, Kansas City and Los Angeles are good fits for each other in a trade. The Royals also need to find a right fielder for next season, a position Los Angeles has depth at in the Major Leagues. Maybe the best scenario for the Royals would be a blockbuster that fixes both the outfield and second base problem. So how does this deal sound to you:

Danny Duffy, Aaron Crow, Tim Collins, C+ prospect for Howie Kendrick and Peter Bourjos.

This deal would solve a lot of issues for the Royals while maintaining some of their young bullpen and starting pitching depth. Bourjos had an 116 OPS+ in 2011 and is an excellent defensive centerfielder, which would allow KC to shift Lorenzo Cain to right field. Kendrick obviously solves the second base problem.

Losing Duffy, Crow, and Collins would hurt, but Kansas City can fill in the void with players already in their system. Yordano Ventura would start the season in the rotation in place of Duffy, Donnie Joseph would be the lefty bullpen arm, and Louis Coleman would fill Crow’s late inning assignments.

So what do you think? Would this be enough to land Kendrick and Bourjos? Do you like the deal? Discuss in the comments section.