Why Latest Royals Trade May Be Better Than Stats Indicate, Per Kansas City GM

Bringing Adam Frazier back didn't necessarily move the needle for Kansas City Royals fans.

The trade the Royals made with the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday swapped Frazier, who spent the entire 2024 season on the Kansas City roster, for 28-year-old utility player Cam Devanney. While it may signal the Royals' inclination to buy at the deadline, it doesn't add much firepower.

Frazier is versatile, makes a lot of contact, and can still run the bases well at age 33. But the fact remains that he's been a well below average major league hitter for four years now, with a season OPS+ of 83 as a Pirate.

However, Royals general manager J.J. Picollo did provide hope that the trade may pay off in ways the box score won't necessarily show.

“I do think we missed having his voice,” Picollo said Wednesday, per MLB.com's Anne Rogers. “He was kind of the voice of reason. Even while he wasn’t performing the way he wanted to perform, he was still able to help our team.”

This is only anecdotal evidence, but the Royals were worse in games Frazier played last year than in games he sat out or missed due to injury. They were 53-51 in games he appeared in, versus 33-25 when he was out.

Still, Picollo made the case that the 10-year veteran's experience could pay off in big moments relative to the bench role he's expected to play.

“There’s not a lot of experience there,” Picollo said of the current bench, per Rogers. “That’s not a knock on them. We just know that the veteran player who’s been in that role understands when his time is going to come to play in the game, mentally more prepared, and he’s got it.”

It's always possible a front office executive knows something we don't. So, although it's not like Frazier will suddenly morph into Ken Griffey Jr., perhaps he can subtly increase the Royals' odds of a return to October.

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