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Red Sox Could Trade For Royals Star If Kansas City Sells, Per MLB Insider
May 10, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; A general view of a Boston Red Sox's cap and glove on the field before a game against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Aiken-Imagn Images Peter Aiken-Imagn Images

The Kansas City Royals' trade deadline destiny might still be up in the air.

On Wednesday, the Royals pulled off the world's most minor acquisition, bringing Adam Frazier and his .654 OPS back to Kansas City. To some, that signaled they were ready to declare themselves buyers, but with two weeks to go before the deadline, it's not set in stone.

Meanwhile, there will surely be a long list of teams making calls on Royals starter Seth Lugo, who is likely to opt out of his contract for 2026 and pursue free agency this winter. He'd probably be the best starter traded if the Royals were willing to go there.

The list of suitors may even be growing by the day. On Wednesday, insider Chris Cotillo of MassLive listed Lugo as a potential option for the surging Boston Red Sox, who have won 10 games in a row, among rental rotation pieces.

"The Red Sox think the trio of Garrett Crochet, Brayan Bello and Lucas Giolito is playoff-caliber, especially after Bello and Giolito showed they can dominate for a prolonged stretch. Therefore, any type of rotation add is on the table, especially in the wake of Hunter Dobbins’ season-ending ACL injury," Cotillo wrote.

"There’s talent to be found on the rental market. Arizona’s Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly, Kansas City’s Seth Lugo, Baltimore’s Charlie Morton and Pittsburgh’s Andrew Heaney would all help the group while not breaking the bank."

Lugo has the lowest ERA of anyone listed above, and the rest of them are all impending free agents without a player option to even consider. If the Red Sox front office made a priority list, they'd almost certainly put the 35-year-old Lugo at the top of it.

Still, the Royals can silence all thoughts of such a deal if they play good baseball over the next two weeks. They're 4 1/2 games out of a potential Wild Card spot, and 5 1/2 back of the Red Sox themselves.

But on the flip side, what a fascinating two weeks it will be if the Royals struggle.

More MLB: Royals Predicted To Cut Ties With Two-Time All-Star In Trade To Rival Tigers


This article first appeared on Kansas City Royals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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