Red Sox Could Cut Ties With Star Outfielder In Trade To Royals, Per Insider

The Kansas City Royals truly need better outfielders.

While shuffling combinations in and out of the lineup all year, the Royals have somehow posted -2.5 fWAR from their outfielders this season. They're the only team in the negatives, and in a nutshell, they'd be two or three games closer to the playoffs right now if they had Quadruple-A replacement production from their outfield spots.

As the trade deadline approaches, the Royals might be looking to make a splash acquisition in their outfield, even at 48-52. That move could make all the more sense if the outfielder they acquire is under control beyond the 2025 season.

On Monday, ESPN's Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel named the Royals as a potential trade fit for Boston Red Sox star Jarren Duran, who would be a marquee addition for this Kansas City squad.

"Duran had a huge breakout season in 2024, posting the seventh-best fWAR in the majors at 6.8. He overperformed his underlying metrics, though -- i.e., had some lucky outcomes -- and those metrics have regressed a bit this year, " wrote Passan and McDaniel.

"Now, he's underperforming them -- he has been unlucky -- so his true talent is somewhere south of that star-level figure but better than the roughly 2 WAR (commensurate with a solid regular) he's on pace for this season. With Roman Anthony, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu, the Red Sox have the outfield depth to consider moving Duran for controllable, top-end pitching."

That last sentence is the key, because it all but spells out what the Red Sox would want from the Royals. And who is the only top-end starter on the Kansas City roster who is currently healthy and under contract for next season?

That would be first-time All-Star Kris Bubic, who the Royals would hate to see go after his breakout first half. But there might be a world where this deal makes sense, as Duran is under control two years longer than Bubic, and the Red Sox might be desperate enough to kick in more pieces.

Still, the Royals have to know that if they want to get involved in the Duran sweepstakes, the Red Sox aren't just going to give him up for prospects. They're 5 1/2 games ahead of Kansas City in the standings, so Duran is only getting moved if they feel the deal gets them closer to the playoffs.

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