Yankees, Mets Linked To Royals All-Star Hurler By Rival Exec

The next 12 games could determine the entire season for the Kansas City Royals.

At 47-50, the Royals are hovering on the edges of the Wild Card picture with two weeks to go until the trade deadline. A good run could convince the front office they need to buy, while a losing streak could mean veterans get sent packing.

The biggest name the Royals would have to deal if they sell is starting pitcher Seth Lugo, who has been the subject of many a trade rumor over the last few weeks. A 2024 All-Star whose ERA has dropped even farther in 2025, Lugo would be the prize of the starting pitching market.

As if that's not already an incentive to move Lugo before he opts out of his contract this winter, there's a chance that the two teams in the league's biggest market could incite a bidding war.

On Friday, Buster Olney of ESPN cited a rival executive who said the New York Mets and New York Yankees could both be candidates to trade for Lugo by the Jul. 31 deadline.

"One evaluator believes that Kansas City Royals starter Seth Lugo (who started his career with the Mets) is a natural target for the Mets or Yankees, as they're both big-market teams with resources to burn and a potential willingness to overpay," wrote Olney.

The Royals definitely shouldn't trade Lugo just to trade him, unless they go something like 3-9 in these next 12 games. But the Mets and Yankees, both desperate to win now, could jack up the asking price so high that it's hard for general manager J.J. Picollo to say no.

And as the Aroldis Chapman-Cole Ragans trade in 2023 showed, the Royals don't necessarily have to trade for players whose impact on the big leagues is a few years down the road.

More MLB: Royals Predicted To Cut Ties With 10-Year Veteran Star At Trade Deadline