KC Royals pull last-minute MLB Trade Deadline stunner

At the end of the trade period, the KC Royals are almost the same club.

Major league trades are done for the season. Only minor leaguers may now be dealt, and strictly for other minor leaguers, which means Kansas City will play this campaign out without a major overhaul.

Yes, Benintendi, Merrifield and Rivera are gone, but their departures mean the Royals can get a better look at young outfielder Kyle Isbel and there are two fewer players to consider in an already confusing infield situation.

Despite a horrid two games in New York last week, Scott Barlow, widely considered an almost certain trade piece, will continue to anchor the back end of manager Mike Matheny’s bullpen, where he’ll still be joined by Josh Staumont, who generated trade talk of his own. Absent a tweak or two here and there, the rotation will remain the same, but chances of any of the mainstays—Brad Keller, Brady Singer, Kris Bubic, Zack Greinke and Daniel Lynch—moving on were never great, or even very good.

So, why didn’t Kansas City make more moves? The deep market for relief pitching never really developed, leaving Barlow and Staumont in Kansas City. But it’s entirely possible Kansas City simply wanted far more than other clubs were willing to sacrifice for them.

And Michael A. Taylor? His Gold Glove defense presumably attracted contenders and he’s having one of his best seasons at the plate, but his reputation for a weak bat (he had a career .243/.299/.387 slash entering tonight’s game with the White Sox) may have concerned other clubs.

The MLB Trade Deadline has expired. The Royals made some interesting moves.