​The days when the 2024 Royals seemed like a genuine postseason threat against the Yankees feel like distant memories now. Bobby Witt Jr. still stands as one of the game’s most electrifying talents, but the rest of Kansas City’s roster hasn’t blossomed in the way the team had hoped, leaving the Royals with one of the league’s bleakest records. Witt Jr. is unequivocally off-limits, but even on a team that has underperformed, there are specific pieces worth pursuing to push the margin game in the right direction.
The Yankees, for their part, could use help behind the plate, and Salvador Perez’s veteran presence would be an appealing fit in theory—until you examine the numbers he has posted this season. Perez is currently carrying a .603 OPS, by a wide margin the worst of his career. Behind him, Carter Jensen has received the bulk of the catching duties, and he is controllable through 2032, making him a cornerstone piece for the Royals rather than a trade chip. If New York were to seek improvement from Kansas City, the catching position isn’t where they should begin.
A factor that has slowed the Royals’ progress this year is Vinnie Pasquantino, who is on the cusp of returning from the injured list. When he has played, he has produced the worst season of his career, with an OPS+ of 88. Trading for a left-handed bat who remains under club control through 2028 would present real challenges. The Royals will hesitate to sell low after one rough season, and the calculations around moving Pasquantino become even more complex when you consider that handing the DH job to Giancarlo Stanton would be increasingly questionable as injury issues persist.
Undeniably, the most sensible route to improving a roster with an eye toward future prospects is through the pitching staff. The Royals’ pitching has been the larger disappointment relative to the lineup, and this remains a common thread for the club. A recent report from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic highlighted Kansas City’s reluctance to part with Michael Wacha and/or Seth Lugo, signaling that any return for either pitcher would likely be steep. Losing one or both veterans would hurt the team’s immediate stability, yet we’re discussing players who are controllable only through next season. The Royals aren’t a club perched on the edge of contention, especially with Cole Ragans’ injury woes keeping him out until at least the middle of next season.
Wacha, who leads the American League in innings pitched with 114.2 frames, has delivered a fifth consecutive, highly reliable season as a dependable innings-eater. Since the start of 2022, he has posted an ERA+ of 120 across more than 700 innings for three different teams, underscoring his value as a veteran presence who can stabilize a rotation. While a meaningful return for him is reasonable to expect, Lugo complicates matters. Since joining the Royals last year, Lugo has not lived up to his 2024 performance, posting a 4.32 ERA and a 1.350 WHIP, and the $21.5 million he is owed next season isn’t exactly a bargain in this market. Given those dynamics, any trade involving either pitcher would pose a significant challenge for teams seeking short-term upgrades without sacrificing long-term value.
In short, while there are attractive pieces for potential midseason upgrades, the Royals’ path back toward respectability hinges primarily on a careful, projectable approach to building around pitching depth and stability, rather than chasing a quick fix at the plate. The combination of Witt Jr.’s ongoing elite talent, the need to preserve valuable controllable assets like Pasquantino and the challenge of extracting substantial, value-driven returns for veteran pitchers who are only under team control for a short window makes the task of addressing the Royals’ shortcomings a nuanced, long-term endeavor.