Royals Rumors: Mike Moustakas trade hinges on Manny Machado
The next wave of Royals rumors will be happening throughout the rest of July and the biggest name who is a for sure trade piece, Mike Moustakas, will have to wait on what happens with Manny Machado.
Jon Jay and Kelvin Herrera have both been traded by the Kansas City Royals, but the team likely isn’t done making moves. The next obvious piece that will be traded is Mike Moustakas, who is a free agent after the season wraps up.
Moose will be a rental for whichever team wants to trade for him, but unfortunately for the Royals, another player is going to have to get dealt first before Moose can find a temporary home. That player is Manny Machado of the Orioles, who is arguably the biggest trade piece right now for contending teams.
Machado has been a star for the Orioles during his time in the league and a team wanting to make a splash shouldn’t hesitate to acquire the now-shortstop/former third baseman. Despite being a rental, Machado is going to demand a huge haul. Moose isn’t going to generate that type of buzz simply because he’s not as good as Manny Machado.
According to a source, the Royals are trying to find a match for a Mike Moustakas deal, but it appears KC will have to wait until Manny Machado gets dealt first. Manny could be the domino that starts a number of things in motion.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) July 15, 2018
Moustakas didn’t have a good offseason and landed back with the Royals after no one else showed interest in him, losing a significant amount of money in the process. He’s doing okay this year, batting .249 with 19 home runs and 58 RBI, but he’s not exactly the same player we saw last year.
The Royals have been showcasing Moustakas at first base, likely to generate more interest in him, and the Yankees seem to be “taking the bait”. Both the Yankees and Red Sox are apparently intrigued by Moose and could be contenders to trade for him in the next few weeks, at least according to Jerry Crasnick.
The #RedSox and #Braves are both interested in Mike Moustakas as a trade deadline acquisition, sources say. The #Yankees have already been mentioned as a potential landing spot. There's enough of a market for Moose that it's more likely than not the Royals deal him this month.
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) July 15, 2018
As Mark Feinsand tweeted higher up in my article, once Manny Machado gets dealt, the rest of the trade scenarios should come crashing down and quickly. That will mean we’ll be seeing a few Royals rumors develop rather quickly.
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Mike Moustakas isn’t going to command nearly what Machado will, but if the Royals can get a few decent prospects in exchange for him, then that’d be great for an organization looking to rebuild.
Moustakas has the ability to play third base (his preferred position), first base, and could also be the designated hitter if traded to an American League squad. He’s not as flashy as Machado, but Moose is the perfect type of player for a team in contention because he has power and more importantly, he’s been in the postseason before.
Hopefully Mike Moustakas can be dealt to a team that makes a deep run in October because the guy deserves to play for a winner. The Kansas City Royals aren’t going to be winners for several years.