The KC Royals look to be heading towards an active offseason after the lockout ends, with a good amount of money to spend in free agency and some interesting decisions to be made with the top prospects looking ready to compete at a major league level.
There are a couple of players on the roster that can be used as trade bait to see what the value of those players is, which could lead to a trade or two being made in this offseason. The KC Royals have some players who have been named as prime trade candidates over the season, players like Scott Barlow and Whit Merrifield come to mind, but there hasn’t been anything to come from the rumors.
That could/should change this offseason as some players are on the decline, but still, have value, and the Royals could look to get younger in some positions. The KC Royals have a lot of young talent in the system and some of the older players could be on their way out of town.
With the roster, the way it currently is a trade would make sense for a couple of players who could garner a decent return and not hurt the competitiveness of the 2022 Royals team. The first one of these three players is the closer of the team Scott Barlow.
1. Scott Barlow
While I noted that relief pitching needs help, trading one of the more underappreciated closers in baseball may be best for both parties. Last season Scott Barlow was stellar as the KC Royals closer, putting up numbers like a 0.48 HR/9, 2.63 FIP, and accruing 2.1 WAR as a reliever. Barlow was really good for the Royals last season and his trade value is relatively high, being a reliever kind of lowers the value.
Trading Barlow also kind of makes sense for both parties as the Royals have other relievers who can close and Barlow’s value is not going to be higher, barring he continues being good this year. This is also the last year of team control for Barlow as 2022 is the last year he is arbitration-eligible, so trading him might make sense if management believes in the other closer options.
Another trade candidate is a Royals fan favorite and for the past 3-4 seasons has seen his name be in trade rumors.
2. Whit Merrifield
This may be redundant from the years of Whit being labeled as a key trade target for many competitive teams, but this offseason the fan-favorite in KC needs to go. For one, he is in the last year of his deal, his final year in 2023 is a team option, and he is starting to show signs of regression at the plate.
Whit Merrifield has never been a high OBP player, his overall OBP in his career is .317, but one stat has declined over the past couple years and that is his ISO. ISO is just SLG.-AVG., and it determines how much power a player hits to keep it simple. Whit has always been pretty average in ISO, which is around .140-.150, but this past season he had a paltry .117.
While Whit is regressing at the plate, a little bit, his fielding and versatility are still there. According to some of the advanced fielding stats, last season was Whit’s best defensive year since his first season back in 2016. So while Whit is still going to regress teams will be interested in trading for the super-utility man, cause he has a proven track record of getting hits and being good in the field.
The next player is a surprising one as he came off a breakout campaign which saw him maybe become the future at the keystone or shortstop.
3. Nicky Lopez
This might be an interesting scenario for the KC Royals to take as Nicky Lopez is coming off a breakout year that saw him hit .300 on the year. Nicky’s breakout year also saw him become one of the best defenders in baseball as he led the league in OAA, outs above average, with 25. Nicky has always been a stud defensively, but no one expected such a breakout with his bat as he struggled early in his career at the plate.
The interesting part about trading Lopez would be that some teams need a Nicky Lopez on their team, they need a player who can get professional at-bats, stellar fielding, and even great baserunning. Teams could be lining up to get Lopez if they wanted and if they do the KC Royals should entertain the thought of trading Lopez, if the price is right.
Nicky Lopez can be the future at 2nd or shortstop for the KC Royals, but with how the farm system is developing players like Nick Loftin and Michael Massey the Royals may not need Lopez. For now though, the KC Royals should entertain the idea of trading Nicky Lopez, but not go for it unless it is a deal they can’t refuse.
All three of these players could be on different teams starting in the 2022 season, but with how the Royals operate expect at least one of these names to be on their way out or even signed to an extension. These three are all similar in the fact that they are all in the final year of their deals or arbitration, and they have good trade value.