Orioles-Royals Blockbuster Trade Idea Sends Cedric Mullins To KC In 1-For-1 Swap

The Kansas City Royals still have some trade options to explore as the 2025 season approaches.

If there's anything the Royals obviously need at this point, it's help in their outfield. The corner outfield spots plagued them the most of all last season, but realistically, they could look for help in center field as well.

Baltimore Orioles star Cedric Mullins, a former American League All-Star coming off a so-so year in 2024, could be worth looking into. As the Orioles continue to push top prospects to the majors, veterans like Mullins have become expendable.

In a recent article, SB Nation's Jeremy Greco proposed a hypothetical trade that would ship Mullins to Kansas City in a one-for-one swap for relief pitcher Hunter Harvey, who spent the first three years of his big-league career in Baltimore through the 2021 season.

"If the Orioles wouldn’t part with Kjerstad, or they traded him elsewhere, they might be willing to move on from Cedric Mullins," Greco wrote. "I’ll offer up my own suggested trade of Hunter Harvey for Mullins, straight up."

Mullins had a fair amount of smoke surrounding him at last year's trade deadline, but he ultimately stayed put, in part because he was mired in a long slump. He's now entering his final year of team control, so the Orioles will still be exploring deals with Colton Cowser ready to take over as the full-time center fielder.

Eventually, Mullins' season-long numbers ended in a solid spot: a 107 OPS+, 2.6 bWAR, 18 home runs, and 32 stolen bases. Those would all be massive improvements to the Royals' 2024 outfield mix, and Mullins showed in 2021 and 2022 that he's capable of four WAR or better.

There is no guarantee that the two sides will even come to the table and discuss such a trade, but if the Orioles are itching to get some value back for Mullins, it's possible Kansas City could make their move.

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