We've reached the mid-way break point in the 2026 MLB season, and it couldn't come any sooner for the Royals. Losers of five straight and tied with the LA Angels for the worst record in the league, Kansas City has some major soul-searching to do over the coming days, as well as some league-wide discussion as the Aug. 3 trade deadline nears.
It's clear that this team has holes nearly everywhere you look and needs quality additions throughout a poor lineup. For a team like KC who expected to make some noise in this year's playoff picture, it's hard to know whether or not to buy or sell.
For me, the answer is clear. Sell the older guys and invest more into the talent-proven youth that you do have. Guys like Jonathan India, Carlos Estevez, Starling Marte, and Seth Lugo all have to go. Keeping the face of the franchise, Bobby Witt Jr., happy, along with Jac Caglianone, Carter Jensen, and Noah Cameron, as building blocks, needs to be the priority.
In the process of getting rid of your older assets, acquiring cheap, surprise stars needs to be where J.J. Picollo looks. And it shouldn't take him long before he reaches the conclusion that Washington Nationals ace Foster Griffin is the perfect trade target.
The Royals shouldn't let former 1st-round selection Foster Griffin slip away twice
Left-handed starter Foster Griffin has been one of baseball's best revelations/comeback stories of the entire season. Drafted 28th overall by Kansas City in 2014, Griffin suffered a myriad of injuries before finally making his debut in 2020, only to immediately endure a forearm strain and undergo Tommy John surgery.
Like many pitchers over the years, that is a devastating blow to a career and a tough thing to come back from. Griffin fizzled out in the major leagues in 2022 and spent three years playing professionally in Japan, reconstructing his pitching style and getting himself healthy.
He then signed a one-year deal with the Nationals prior to this season, which was likely his last chance in the MLB. Griffin has made every bit of that opportunity, and has so far started 19 games, posting a 10-2 record, a 2.77 ERA, 109 strikeouts, and an incredible 1.02 WHIP. His efforts have earned him an All-Star nod and created some trade buzz around his name.
Aside from Michael Wacha, the Royals haven't had any semblance of consistent starting production, and trading for Griffin would ensure a starter-quality guy for years to come, as he is just 30 years old. While Griffin's value is at its highest, it's still not close to what it would normally be to trade for an All-Star starter, given his past history of injuries.
But that's a risk that KC might have to make, as where they find themselves right now is a desperate state. A realistic contract estimation for Griffin would likely be around three years at roughly $18 million per season. It's not nothing, but being a good team requires money to be spent on good players. A decade-plus Royals reunion with Foster Griffin makes too much sense.
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