Kansas City Royals could have used Matt Strahm this season

By Leigh Oleszczak | Jul 13, 2018

SAN DIEGO, CA - JUNE 6: Matt Strahm #55 of the San Diego Padres pitches during the first inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves at PETCO Park on June 6, 2018 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Denis Poroy/Getty Images) /

The Kansas City Royals are not having an ideal season, winning just 26 games so far. Matt Strahm would have been a real asset to the pitching staff.

Let’s flashback to about a year ago. The Kansas City Royals were very much in contention to make the postseason (they might have even been within striking distance of first place in the American League Central) and Dayton Moore had a tough decision to make.

If Moore opted to buy, the Royals would have to give up prospects they’d desperately need for the future. If he opted to sell, then fans would have been outraged at the big time players not getting to ride out the rest of the season. The Royals could have stood pat, but that just didn’t seem to be a realistic option.

Dayton Moore decided to buy. In doing so, he acquired Ryan Buchter, Trevor Cahill, and Brandon Maurer from the San Diego Padres while surrendering Travis Wood, Esteury Ruiz, and Matt Strahm. Losing Wood and Ruiz weren’t big deals, as Wood was dreadful during his short stint as a Royal and Ruiz was only 18 years old when the deal went down.

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Strahm is the big loss in this trade. Yes, his 2017 campaign wasn’t as strong as his rookie year, but the Royals certainly could have used him this year. Out of the players they got in return, only one is still with the Royals, and he’s on his way to being one of the most unpopular players among the fans. That’s Maurer in case you were wondering.

Buchter was flipped to the Athletics in exchange for Heath Fillmyer and Jesse Hahn. Cahill, also with the Athletics now, wasn’t re-signed after an abysmal few months in Kansas City.

Going back to Strahm, he’s looking good with the Padres at the moment. He’s thrown 30.1 innings and has an ERA of 2.67 with a 1.022 WHIP. Strahm has been used as both a starter and reliever for the Padres, starting five games and appearing in 17 total.

The Kansas City Royals could have used Strahm this season. Yes, most of us respected the decision to go for it last year, but now that we know the result, it’d be nice to have Strahm in Kansas City. The Royals rotation is completely different since Opening Day and the bullpen has had more than its fair share of problems. Whichever role the Royals had used Strahm in, he’d have been a welcomed arm to this team.

It is worth noting that Strahm has missed a significant amount of time due to injuries, which is likely why the Royals felt comfortable trading him. He missed time in 2017 and missed a good chunk of the beginning of the 2018 season. Still… His arm and 2.67 ERA would have been a nice piece in this pitching staff.

If he becomes an All-Star down the road, that trade with the Padres could go down as the worst trade in Kansas City Royals history. Let’s hope we don’t have to wonder what could have been.

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