Five Royals Storylines to Watch for in 2018

Trade Deadline: Making Moves or Standing Pat?

Baseball Prospectus’ PECOTA system projects the Royals to finish tied with the Marlins for the worst record in the MLB at 66-96. The team has exceeded the projections for a whopping eight consecutive seasons, though. After losing Lorenzo Cain and (as things stand now) the dynamic duo of Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas to free agency, this lineup is going to have immense trouble scoring runs. That’s just half of the battle.

Dayton Moore and Ned Yost want to rebuild. They also want to win soon. There’s a fine line one can walk in order to do both at the same time. This year is not the time to do so. If at the trade deadline, pieces such as Whit Merrifield and Kelvin Herrera are experiencing successful seasons, expect the Royals to listen to trade offers for them.

Herrera’s been involved in trade rumors for a few years now. In regards to those rumors, along with the club’s recent moves, here’s what he had to say:

"“I knew the Royals were rebuilding, or they are rebuilding,” “I wasn’t worried at all. I tell you: I’ll do my job wherever.”"

Danny Duffy has had some trade rumors surrounding him pop up as well. He quickly put those to rest with his intent to remain with the club:

Just a few things to think about. If the club is out of contention near the trade deadline, it’s still possible that pieces get moved. The same goes if the team is somehow outperforming its projections. No matter how certain you may be, the game of baseball will always find a way to throw you a curveball when you’re expecting a fastball down the middle.