Oakland A's Receive Royals No. 4 and No. 18 Prospects in Lucas Erceg Trade

The Oakland Athletics traded right-handed reliever, Lucas Erceg, to the Kansas City Royals.

Apr 28, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Oakland Athletics relief pitcher Lucas Erceg (70) reacts to a strikeout to end the game during the ninth inning against the Oakland Athletics at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: James A. Pittman-USA TODAY Sports / James A. Pittman-USA TODAY Sports

At 12:30p PST the Oakland Athletics traded Lucas Erceg to the Kansas City Royals, per Jeff Passan. Erceg was putting up good numbers with the A's this season, posting 3.68 ERA with 41 strikeouts in 36.2 innings. Erceg started the year on fire and was practically un-hittable in April.

The right-hander was the A's set-up man in their bullpen, behind All-Star Mason Miller. The high octane reliever will get a chance to chase October, as the Royals currently hold the third AL Wild Card spot.

In return, the A's acquired the Royals No. 4 prospect Mason Barnett, No. 18 Will Klein, and minor league outfielder Jared Dickey. Those rankings are from MLB Pipeline, while the updated list at Baseball America (which includes recent draftees) has Barnett ranked 11th and Klein at No. 16.

Barnett was the Royals third round pick in 2022 from Auburn. The 23-year-old right hander has a 4.91 ERA in 91.2 innings with 109 strikeouts. Barnett has a double digit K/9 at 10.70 and an average walk rate with a 3.53 BB/9. Barnett is best known for his hard slider and follows it up with a mid 90s fastball. He sprinkles in a 12-6 curve and a changeup, which have both been effective so far. BA has him as a potential fourth or fifth starter.

The 24-year-old righty and fifth round pick in 2020, Klein made his MLB debut with the Royals earlier this season in April. Klein is exclusively a reliever, appearing in 39 games across Triple-A and MLB. Klein has a 70-grade fastball from MLB.com, which sits in the upper 90s and has touched triple digits this year. Klein will probably get called up to the A's at some point this season, meaning the A's will replace Erceg's velocity with Klein's.

Finally, the A's also obtained left-handed outfielder Jared Dickey. So far this season in High-A, Dickey has hit .269 with a .784 OPS. Dickey was the Royals 11th round pick in 2023 and has performed well since then. He provides some decent power, as has hit nine home runs in 290 at-bats this year. Dickey has some patience at the plate, walking at a slightly above average rate and striking out only 19% of the time.

Overall, the A's got a very solid return for Erceg. It was assumed the package to acquire Erceg would have to be pretty hefty, since he is under team control until 2029. Barnett is the biggest name in the trade, but Klein will have the more immediate impact.