Royals Could Trade Away $45 Million Cy Young Runner-Up, MLB Writer Claims

Unless something goes horribly wrong, the Kansas City Royals shouldn't be true sellers at the 2025 trade deadline. But what about a buy/sell solution?

Kansas City has one of the best pitching staffs in Major League Baseball, and one of the very worst offenses. Because they're not likely to take on big contracts and don't have a great farm system, their best way to land offense at the trade deadline might be to deal from their pitching surplus.

It's an approach the Royals took in the offseason, trading starting pitcher Brady Singer to the Cincinnati Reds for infielder/outfielder Jonathan India. And the jury is still out on that trade, because neither player has performed very well so far in their new surroundings.

Will the Royals go back to the well? One baseball writer suggests they could trade an even bigger name this time around.

On Thursday, Mike Gillespie of FanSided named veteran righty Seth Lugo, who finished second in American League Cy Young Award voting last season, as a potential trade chip to help the Royals get some offense this summer.

"Because it takes top talent to get top talent, and Picollo isn't likely to offer other clubs a good hitter to get another, deadline sellers will demand pitching from Kansas City. Lugo fits that bill and could find himself at the center of meaningful trade talk," Gillespie wrote.

"Lugo has a $15 million player option for next year, meaning he might bolt a new club to test free agency again. Clubs have taken such a risk before, though, and will again."

Lugo has a 3.02 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in nine starts this season, nearly a carbon copy of his 2024 numbers. He's missed a couple starts with a finger injury, but is slated to make his return on Friday. That three-year, $45 million contract the Royals gave him looks like great value, but it might also come to an end a year early.

The only reason the Royals might even consider dumping Lugo is that Noah Cameron, their number-five prospect, has been lights-out in his first four major league starts, pitching to a 1.04 ERA. And with the rotation at full-strength, Cameron may very well be optioned back to Triple-A.

Still, it would be an awfully risky gambit to move Lugo midseason, and the Royals clubhouse might not take too kindly to the news.

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