Royals Rumors: Royals Could Be Biggest Sellers in July
Winter meetings are over and the Royals rumors have calmed down a bit. It’s been reported, however, that if July hits and the KC Royals aren’t in playoff contention, they could be the biggest sellers and get a huge haul as a result.
The winter meetings were insane this year, especially for Kansas City Royals fans, as the Royals rumors were flying left and right and in almost every direction.
The team parted ways with Wade Davis, sending him to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for Jorge Soler. While the trade rubbed some people the wrong way, it was actually a good trade for the Royals long term.
Davis is 31 and has had elbow issues in recent history. Soler is 24 and under control for four years. Yes, he’s experienced some injuries of his own, but the guy can play outfield tomorrow and that’s huge for this team. The Royals need guys who can contribute to their roster now, as opposed to two or three years down the stretch.
Anyway, now onto the point of this post.
Jayson Stark of ESPN did an article on “holiday shopping” after the winter meetings and had a few paragraphs written about the Kansas City Royals. Stark writes,
"They’ve already traded Wade Davis (for Jorge Soler). The question now is how many deals like that are yet to come? The consensus among teams that talked to the Royals is that they are likely to trade no more than two additional players from their core, with Lorenzo Cain/Jarrod Dyson/Danny Duffy probably atop that list.But one club they spoke with says they are listening on “everyone,” even though they’re trying to figure out a way to retool but still keep enough of the band together to make one last run at October. If that doesn’t work, though, then file away this prediction from one National League exec: “In July, they’ll be the biggest seller in baseball.”"
Obviously the big news out of that is the part about July. Should July roll around and the Kansas City Royals not be in close contention for a playoff spot, you’d have to imagine that they start selling off pieces.
Here are the guys who will hit the free agent market in 2017:
More from Royals Rumors
- The Royals Need to Extend Bobby Witt Jr. Immediately
- 3 Players the Royals Will Trade Before the Deadline
- The Kansas City Royals Projected 2022 Starting Rotation
- 3 Breakout Candidates for the Kansas City Royals in 2022
- MLB Commissioner Spoke on CBA, Does It Affect the Royals?
- Lorenzo Cain
- Danny Duffy
- Jarrod Dyson
- Alcides Escobar
- Eric Hosmer
- Mike Moustakas
Wade Davis, of course, was on that list too and he’s now going to be donning pin stripes come April.
The thing to note here is that the Royals won’t be able to sign all of these guys to long-term deals. Hell, they’d be lucky to even re-sign two of them.
My guess is that despite the Royals rumors of him being on the trade block, Duffy would be the most likely to receive a new deal because of what he possesses. Duffy is a left-handed starting pitcher who looked like a legit ace for most of last season. The Royals need that in their rotation.
Next: Eric Hosmer's Five Biggest Moments
Hosmer would be my next guess to get re-signed, but he does have Scott Boras as an agent, who is notorious for letting his agents hit the free agent market and see what they’re worth. Hosmer is beloved in Kansas City, but baseball is a business, and if he has a huge year in 2017, he could be hitting the jackpot on the market.
One thing’s for sure though… If the Kansas City Royals aren’t contenders when the trade deadline hits this season, then it’s going to be a rough summer for Royals fans, as they’ll watch all of their World Series heroes be traded to other teams.