Kansas City Royals: Kelvin Herrera trade different kind of feeling for fans
The Kansas City Royals traded closer Kelvin Herrera on Monday evening and it was a move we all expected to happen sooner rather than later. This trade, however, isn’t like the other ones.
Once it was clear that the Kansas City Royals weren’t going to be very good this season, fans knew a fire sale was going to occur over the summer. That would range from the top notch talents like Kelvin Herrera to the guys with longer contracts like Whit Merrifield.
When the Royals traded Jon Jay a few weeks ago, not many fans cared all that much. Jay was a Royal for just a few months and we all knew he was brought here basically TO be traded, so when he was, it wasn’t surprising at all.
Kelvin Herrera, on the other hand, signifies the start of something else, and that’s the trading of guys brought up in the Royals organization. While it was sad to see Eric Hosmer sign somewhere else this offseason, he chose to do so. He wasn’t traded away in the middle of the season and forced to say good-bye to his teammates either before or during a game.
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Wade Davis might have been traded, but it still wasn’t quite like this. Davis was traded before the 2017 season even began. We had time to absorb the trade before the season began.
Trading Herrera is the sign that the Kansas City Royals we knew and loved from 2013-2017 are officially gone. He was the last of that iconic H-D-H and it’s a very real possibility that Royals fans will never see a better bullpen in their lives.
Herrera was with the Royals since he was 16 years old and had some key moments with the organization. Of course, we’ll all probably remember him most for throwing behind Brett Lawrie in 2015. That whole “bad boy Royals” thing was a memorable time as well and it’s likely we don’t see something like that again for a long time, if ever.
Herrera was also clutch in the postseason, posting a 1.26 ERA in the two Royals playoff runs. During that time he pitched in 28.2 innings and gave up just four runs. His five scoreless innings during the 2015 World Series was incredible to witness.
No Royals fan is going to be upset about trading Herrera. We knew this day would come, especially after the sluggish start, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be bummed and reminisce on the good times. Herrera was a prime part of those good times and we’ll all be pulling for him in D.C. as the season rolls on.
Thanks for everything Kelvin Herrera! Kansas City will miss you!