Grading Royals' 2025 trade deadline: How well did J.J. Picollo deliver on top needs?

It's August now, the trade deadline has passed and now we enter the heart of the summer stretch months.

In order to prepare for those summer months, J.J. Picollo had some work to do if he wanted the Kansas City Royals to compete for their second consecutive postseason appearance. He told the media the weekend prior to the deadline he was "in the business of getting better" but no one quite knew what that looked like at the time.

It turns out he meant adding, as Picollo certainly went to work the past few days, constructing a lineup that bares more reason for optimism than it showed in an abysmal first half, while also adding to their pitching depth amid a period of major injuries to key names.

But let's look at how good the Royals did on the five moves they made ahead of the trade deadline.

Grading Royals' 2025 trade deadline: How well did J.J. Picollo deliver on top needs?

Adam Frazier, Pittsburgh Pirates

Instant Grade: C-

Grade after eight games: C-

The Royals first move might have been their only miss of the 2025 trade season.

They sent an older (28) but promising farmhand in Cam Devanney to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for fellow utility man Adam Frazier. By all accounts this a clubhouse move to acquire an additional veteran name to help guide some of the younger core on this team, because it certainly wasn't one based on play on the field.

Last season with the Royals, Frazier sported a pitiful 64 wRC+. And an 82 wRC+ in half a season with the Pirates since then has done little to prove he's a worthwhile hitter in this lineup.

While his versatility is something the Royals value, he's still just been a 77 wRC+ bat since the trade. Thankfully though, his .261 AVG isn't terrible and he doesn't strikeout, otherwise he would have no use to the Royals other than clubhouse vibes guy.

Luckily for the Picollo and Co. as well, the powerful utility man in Devanney has also not gotten a shot in the majors in Pittsburgh yet to really prove this deal somewhat pointless.

Randal Grichuk, Arizona Diamondbacks

Initial Grade: B

Grade after four games: B+

With one of the wort outfields in the game this season, the Royals couldn't bank on waiting for Jac Caglianone to find his inevitable stride at the big level, nor could they get carried away with the uptick in production from their other rookie in John Rave if they really wanted to make a playoff push.

Acquiring Grichuk gave them a near-average, right-handed veteran outfield bat - something they lacked overall - who also happened to be coming off a career in Arizona the year prior with a 139 wRC+.

He became that much more valuable in the interim with Jac Caglianone suffering a hamstring injury and subsequently hitting the IL the very next day. Not to mention, his first impressions have been great with a home run already, a .747 OPS and 102 wRC+ through 14 plate appareances.

To only have to give up a depth reliever in Andrew Hoffmann - who struggled to a 6.31 FIP, 2.36 WHIP and .318 BAA in three big league outings - made this deal a whole lot better for Kansas City, turning an expendable and questionable "asset" into an experienced bat-first outfielder.

Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek, San Diego Padres

Grade: B+

With Cole Ragans and Michael Lorenzen on the shelf for the time being and Bubic shelved for the rest of 2025, the Royals were in desperate need to find more sustainable ways to fill their rotation's gaps without having to resort to either bullpen days, or ineffective spot starting options like Rich Hill.

They wasted little time on deadline day getting a deal across the line to address this conundrum, acquiring two major league-capable right-handed pitchers with control from the Padres in exchange for backup catcher Freddy Fermin.

Losing a fan-favorite backup catcher who may've been below average offensively but could hit for decent enough average and hold his own behind the plate is not an easy move to make. However, with the likes of Luke Maile on the active roster to backup Salvador Perez for now and top prospect Carter Jenen waiting in the wings, the time was as good as ever to move Fermin for a solid return.

Kolek has both big league experience in the bullpen, as well as 14 major league starts under his belt this season, where he's thrown to a respectable 4.18 ERA. Bergert is in the midst of a soldi rookie campaign, pitching to a 2.78 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and .185 BAA in 11 outings (seven starts). The best thing about both of them, Kolek still has a year of pre-arbitration remaining while Bergert has two pre-arb year left.

Bailey Falter, Pittsburgh Pirates

Grade: A-

As promising as Bergert and Kolek are to add to this pitch mix, there's no guaranteeing they'll stick around in the majors all the time down the stretch.

This made the Royals buzzer-beating deadline day deal for Bailey Falter all the more important, as Falter has been crafting a very respectable season with the Pirates all year. Through 22 starts, he's thrown 113.1 innings to a 3.73 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and .228 BAA. He's a quality big league innings eater with three years of control, which is exactly what the Royals need.

To only need to give up a blocked reliever with control limitations at the major league level (1.88 WHIP and 19.2% walk rate) in Evan Sisk and an undrafted free agent first baseman in Callan Moss, who's having a good year but is still a relative unknown, elevates this deal to another level.

Mike Yastrzemski, San Francisco Giants

Grade: B+

If Falter's deal was a buzzer beater, they definitely needed to send the Yastrzemski deal with the Giants up to the booth for review because it came in under the wire.

Regardless of how it came to to be, the Royals got their extra outfield bat to bolster this struggling unit, and better yet, they got one that has been more than capable of assuming a starting role and can do so until Caglianone returns. He can also serve as the perfect left-handed corner outfield platoon partner for Grichuk.

A 97 wRC+ and eight homers aren't necessarily the best representation of Yastrzemski either. He's been an above average hitter in teams of wRC+ for five of his last six seasons entering 2025, while belting 15+ homers in each of those seasons as well. Pair with that his ability to get on base with double-digit walk rates - including a 12.6% mark this season - and he checks a lot of boxes for KC.

Now they did have to part ways with a strong performing prospect in Yunior Marte, who's been crafting an excellent sub-3.00 ERA season in Low-A Columbia this year, but surrendering your 20th overall prospect at the time - according to MLB Pipeline - is a small price to pay for getting your outfield looking more like a postseason-capable entity, even if Yastrzemski is just a rental.

Overall Grade: B+

It's hard not to look at the breadth of work this trade season and not think the Royals checked off every major box they needed to if they wanted to not waste a season of their competitive window and make a push for the postseason.

They bolstered their outfield and added much needing pitching cover to account for injuries, the only two glaring "musts" this team needed to address ahead of the deadline.

And they did so in a way that was sustainable for future success, as they didn't mortgage the future by trading any top-tier talent at both the major league or minor league level, and got several pieces that they can fit into their plans in 2026 and beyond.

The fact they weren't the flashiest moves holds this deadline back from being graded in the A class, but it definitely has to be considered the next best thing.