The Royals head into Monday’s series opener with the Reds sitting on a dismal 18-47 record. They’ve dropped six straight, and a surprising five-game win streak from the A’s has pulled Oakland within two games of K.C. in the race to the bottom of the league.
Kansas City is clearly ticketed for another summer as a deadline seller. While the Royals have a few interesting trade chips who seem likely to change uniforms within the next two months, franchise backstop Salvador Perez is not among them. Royals general manager J.J. Picollo went on record to quash speculation about a Perez deal, saying the organization doesn’t “have any intention of trading Salvy and it’s not something we are looking to do” (link via Jaylon Thompson of The Kansas City Star).
Last week, Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic reported the Royals were open to packaging other veteran players in trade discussions involving reliever Aroldis Chapman. That fueled some loose speculation about Perez’s potential involvement, though that always seemed far-fetched for myriad reasons. Picollo stated that another team reached out to inquire about the backstop’s availability but downplayed the importance of that (via Anne Rogers of MLB.com).
Even if the front office had a desire to move Perez, they’d face a number of hurdles. Foremost is his full no-trade protection as a 10-and-5 player (one with ten years of MLB service, the past five of which have come with his current team). “He completely controls the destiny and he has told us over and over again he wants to be a Royal his whole career,” the GM said.
Perez could kill any trade talks from the get-go. Even if he reconsidered moving on from the only franchise he’s ever known, a deadline trade would be tough to engineer. Significant midseason deals for catchers are rare, with teams often apprehensive about an incoming backstop adjusting to an unfamiliar pitching staff on the fly.
There’d also be a noteworthy financial component to any Perez trade. He’s playing this season on a $20M salary. He’ll take home a matching figure next year and is guaranteed $22M for 2025. There’s also a $2M buyout on a $13.5M club option covering the 2026 campaign. All told, Perez would have a little under $54M in guaranteed money still remaining on the deal at the deadline.
That’s a hefty figure for another club to take on midseason. Trades of players with significant contracts can be easier to put together over the offseason when clubs have greater budgetary flexibility and/or more time to ship out the money in other deals. Kansas City would likely have had to eat some of that money to facilitate a trade. The front office probably isn’t eager about doing so considering Perez’s importance to the franchise as a seven-time All-Star and anchor of their 2015 World Series club.
To his credit, the 33-year-old has continued to produce offensively even as the lineup around him has floundered. Perez is hitting .273/.308/.502 through 247 trips to the plate. His 13 home runs are the most in the majors for a catcher. As has been the case throughout his career, Perez has gotten below-average marks for his pitch framing from public metrics. He’s clearly respected for his unquantifiable work with the pitching staff, however, and the Royals have kept him behind the plate while primarily moving MJ Melendez to the corner outfield.
Even with Perez all but a lock to stick in Kansas City past Aug. 1, Picollo and his staff should be able to make some moves. Chapman is as likely as anyone in the sport to be traded, perhaps early in deadline season. Closer Scott Barlow, arbitration-eligible through 2024, could be on the move. Hard-throwing righty Josh Staumont could intrigue some clubs if healthy (he’s currently out with a neck strain), while players like Nicky Lopez and Matt Duffy might have modest appeal to teams trying to add a depth infielder.
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