The Five Best Trades in Royals History

Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports

4. Wil Myers and Jake Odorizzi for James Shields and Wade Davis (December 9, 2012)

This is a trade that, if the Royals end up making the playoffs, could move higher up the list. Should the Royals fail to reach the postseason, and either Myers and/or Odorizzi turn into stars for the Tampa Bay Rays, then this trade could end up on last week’s list. However, this trade makes the best trades list for one reason – hope.

This trade sent a message to the Royals fan base that they were, finally, planning on going for it. Now was the time to end the playoff drought, and to get out of the rut of mediocrity. While the Royals failed on their quest for the postseason, the 86-76 record put together in 2013 was their best season since 1989. Hope had come back.

While Myers and Odorizzi have struggled at times for the Rays, Shields and Davis have been essentially everything that the Royals could have asked for. Shields has stepped in as the ace that the Royals have needed, and while Davis failed as a starting pitcher, he has turned into perhaps that best setup man in baseball.

The acquisition of James Shields and Wade Davis helped change the mindset and the direction of the Royals. Hopefully, that trade can also change something else – a lack of postseason baseball in Kansas City.