Kansas City Royals: Cornerstones of team moving forward

Since these are the given building blocks, who might be some other pieces that the Royals could build around or use in trades?

They are: Jorge Soler, Ian Kennedy, and Danny Duffy. These three players are in a unique situation.

Jorge Soler has wowed just about anyone with his raw power and his near Royals’ record breaking home run numbers. He also has driven in 88 RBI this season. Almost all of his power numbers are up from previous years. His good season can most likely be contributed to keeping healthy. He has played in 126 games this year, which has given him plenty of time to play and improve.

Soler will be 28 next season and next season will be his contract year. If he starts off hot, trading him at his highest value maybe in the Royals’ best interest since most of their stud players are in either of the Royals’ High A or in Double A teams.

If the Royals receive some high-end prospects that would complement those teams, it might behoove Dayton Moore to make a move. Then again, the Royals have not had a player with this much raw power before. He definitely draws some attention with his at-bats.

Ian Kennedy and Danny Duffy are also valuable members of the Royals’ pitching staff. They could provide veteran leadership to younger pitchers such as Jakob Junis, Keller, and the intriguing arms in the minor leagues.

Whit Merrifield’s arduous journey from the minor leagues to a sparkling career (so far) should provide a guiding light to the minor leaguers that hard work, effort, and a willingness to put the needs of the team first will pay off. These traits coupled with a steady rise in batting average, average pop, and speed proves that he is an ideal cornerstone player.

With Merrifield’s metrics busting play (for his age and time spent in the minors), the last two cornerstones the Royals will plan on building around include Salvador Perez and Alex Gordon.