Royals Rumors: Most Royals available for trade at 2019 deadline

Royals rumors have begun, as the Kansas City Royals have reportedly said they’re willing to trade “nearly anybody” as the trade deadline inches closer.

Well, for those KC Royals fans who thought the 2019 season would see improvement from the 2018 campaign, that hasn’t exactly been the case so far. We’re a month and a half into the 2019 season and the Royals are 19-40, which is somehow worse than what they were at this point last year.

With the team being so bad, it makes sense that the Kansas City Royals would be willing to listen to offers on just about anyone on their team. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com was the first to break the news, writing,

"According to a source, the Royals have started to let it be known that nearly anybody on their roster is available in a trade, with shortstop Adalberto Mondesi and third baseman Hunter Dozier among the select untouchables."

So, there you have it. The two names that won’t be moved are Adalberto Mondesi and Hunter Dozier. Mondesi isn’t surprising, as he’s a superstar in the making for the boys in blue. Dozier being untouchable is a bit more shocking, however, as he was lurking in the “bust” category until a month ago. Clearly the Royals see him being a part of this rebuild.

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A name that wasn’t included on the no trade list was Whit Merrifield, who was a focal point of Feinsand’s piece. Feinsand wrote,

"The source cited Whit Merrifield as the most intriguing trade candidate, as he’s having another good season and recently signed a club-friendly four-year, $16.25 million contract in January.~~~That contract makes him appealing to virtually every club out there, which is why the Royals will need to be overwhelmed by an offer to trade him. For a rebuilding club, being able to pencil in an affordable, productive player is the dream, but if a contender is willing to part with some notable prospects, it appears Merrifield might be available."

Fans probably don’t want to see Merrifield go, but when it comes down to it, this is the time to trade Merrifield. He’s 30 years old and while he just signed an extension prior to the 2019 season, the Royals need to get whatever prospects they can for their rebuild now.

Merrifield is a great utility player and he’s affordable. Teams will be interested in that and if a team is willing to give up a major haul in exchange for Merrifield’s services, the Royals absolutely need to listen to the offer.

There were four other trade candidates listed in the article: Jorge Soler, Alex Gordon, Ian Kennedy, and Danny Duffy. While Jake Diekman wasn’t listed, he’s an obvious name that’s going to receive interest from teams when Royals rumors truly get cooking.

Soler would be a nice designated hitter option for an AL contender while Gordon has 10-5 rights and can reject any trade. Perhaps if the right contender came calling, Gordon might accept the trade and finish out his career vying for a second World Series title.

Kennedy has hit a bump in the road after a nice start to the year, but he’s still a decent reliever option for a contender. His contract is the only issue, so the Royals would likely have to eat a lot of that salary.

As for Duffy, he’s doing well this year, but it’s been a small sample size. He’s also made it pretty clear in years past that he doesn’t want to leave Kansas City, but he doesn’t get the final say.

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Per Feinsand on the two pitchers I just mentioned,

"The biggest roadblock with these two would be their salaries (Duffy is owed more than $38 million through 2021, while Kennedy is owed more than $26 million through the end of next season), so the Royals would likely need to pay down either contract in order to move them."

With how poorly the Kansas City Royals have played this year, it’s not surprising that just about everyone is on the trade table. The Royals rumors are going to be constant in the coming weeks, but hopefully if the Royals do opt to move some of their better players, they get a big haul in return.

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