Red Sox Superstar Could Be Royals' Target In Seth Lugo Trade, Per Insider

If Seth Lugo is going to be traded, the Kansas City Royals have to feel like they're getting a home run in return.

That's the essence of the report from The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal on Wednesday. Rosenthal wrote that the 49-53 Royals are telling teams around Major League Baseball that they want a controllable outfielder--a long-term fix for their biggest weakness, in any Lugo deal.

"The Kansas City Royals, 4 1/2 games back in the AL wild-card race, are making it clear to clubs that if they trade right-hander Seth Lugo, they will want controllable outfield help in return," Rosenthal stated.

"The Royals aren’t at that point yet. Lugo, 35, is likely to turn down his $15 million player option for 2026 and become a free agent. The Royals not only would consider giving him a qualifying offer, but also believe they would be competitive in trying to re-sign him. So, they are in no rush to disrupt the relationship."

So who might be a reasonable ask from a contending team in need of starting pitching? Well, if you consider the Boston Red Sox contenders, Rosenthal offered up the idea of a trade centered around 2024 All-Star Jarren Duran, who is under control through 2028.

"The athleticism of Boston Red Sox left fielder Jarren Duran makes him attractive to the Royals, as do his three additional years of club control," added Rosenthal. "The Red Sox would not trade Duran for a pitcher who likely would amount to a rental. But the Royals could sweeten the deal with prospects, and teams are targeting their young catching, in particular."

Duran would be a potential game-changer for the Royals, especially in the triples heaven of Kauffman Stadium. His offensive stats aren't eye-popping this season, but he's still got a .756 OPS and an impressive 44 extra-base hits.

The Red Sox do need catching, so perhaps the inclusion of top prospect Carter Jensen, who should be big-league-ready by spring training, could be enough to tilt the scales in favor of making the deal. That would give Boston a righty-lefty platoon for the foreseeable future with rookie Carlos Narváez.

With only eight days to go until the deadline, it might be a deal with too many moving parts to pull off. But the long-term logic of a Duran-Lugo swap is sound on the Royals' end, so it would probably be up to Boston to determine a price tag both sides could live with.

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