Royals Could Trade For Red Sox's Talented 24-Year-Old To Strengthen Outfield

The Kansas City Royals would benefit greatly from acquiring a center fielder before July’s trade deadline.

Kansas City will play the surging Maikel Garcia in center occasionally, but he’s a natural infielder. The Royals will be monitoring the market for center fielders between now and August. They’ve already been loosely linked to Chicago White Sox All-Star Luis Robert.

Another name to keep an eye on is Boston Red Sox outfielder Ceddanne Rafaela, who might soon find himself the odd man out in Boston. The Red Sox are itching to promote No. 2 overall prospect Roman Anthony, but they don’t have room in the outfield at present. With All-Star Jarren Duran off-limits in a trade scenarios and Wilyer Abreu also swinging his way into similar territory, Rafaela has trade chip written all over him.

The 24-year-old Rafaela isn’t hitting yet through eight games, but he had an excellent rookie season in Boston, slashing .246/.274/.390 with 15 home runs, 75 RBI, and 19 stolen bases to go along with elite versatility on defense. Rafaela — like Garcia — can play virtually any outfield or infield position and be a plus-defender. There’s a reason the Red Sox made Rafaela their full-time center fielder this season after Duran played there last year.

If the Royals aren’t overly concerned about Rafaela’s early-career strikeout issues (151 in 2024), they might view him as an intriguing trade target that could satisfy their need in center for years to come.

Rafaela is in year two of an eight-year, $50 million deal, which places him under team control until unrestricted free agency in 2033 (club option for $16 million in 2032).

You have to think Kansas City has Rafaela on its radar to some extent, especially given the situation in Boston's outfield.

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