Royals-White Sox Blockbuster Trade Idea Would Ship $50 Million All-Star To KC
The Kansas City Royals have some great building blocks upon which to concoct their championship run. They also have some dire needs.
Let's start with the good: Bobby Witt Jr. and the Royals starting rotation. Witt is one of the top five players in the entire sport and even after the Brady Singer trade, KC still has three top starting pitchers and enough options behind them to fill out a staff.
That's about where the praises end, though. The rest of the Royals lineup behind Witt isn't up to snuff and the outfield is the part that's slacking the most. Kansas City needs to find a way to change that this winter.
So far, the Royals front office has done a lot of posturing about wanting a middle-of-the-order bat, but hasn't been willing to break the bank in order to get one. Trades remain the most likely solution, but even so, Kansas City is going to have to open up their wallets more than they usually do.
On Tuesday, Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report proposed a trade with the division rival Chicago White Sox, sending center fielder Luis Robert Jr. to Kansas City for pitching prospect Ben Kurdna and outfield prospect Gavin Cross.
"This is purely speculation, but the Royals should try their hand at plucking Robert from their AL Central rivals," Rymer said.
"The Royals aren't rich in prospect talent, but one supposes that doesn't give them much to protect. And after a surprising run to the playoffs this year, they might as well go for broke."
Robert, 27, is by no means cheap, but he's affordable for the kind of star talent he has at his best. He's set to make $15 million in this, the final season of a $50 million contract extension. Then, he carries club options for $20 million in both 2026 and 2027.
Rymer also referenced a statistic that the Royals had a .642 OPS and eight home runs from their center fielders this season. That's putrid, and just one year ago, Robert was coming off an .850 OPS and 38 home runs.
That type of high-end talent is worth the Royals rolling the dice on, even if it means further depleting the farm system.
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Jackson Roberts is a former Division III All-Region DH who now writes and talks about sports for a living. A Bay Area native and a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Jackson makes his home in North Jersey. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, Patriots, and Warriors, and he recently added the Devils to his sports fandom mosaic. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding "Kansas City Royals On SI," please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org