KC Royals Trades: 3 mistakes the club must not make

Other than Monday's promotion of speedy outfielder Dairon Blanco to the majors, there's little left to trigger positive discussion about the last-place KC Royals who, after Monday's 4-3 extra-innings loss to Cincinnati, are 30 games below .500.

After all, talk of postseason play, if any could have been taken seriously, ended almost as soon as the season began. Chatting about who'll represent the Royals in the All-Star Game is pointless—whether fans choose him to start or he's selected as a reserve, Salvador Perez will be the only Royal on the club. While July's amateur draft offers something to chew fat about, many fans pay it no mind. And it's too early to talk about 2024.

But there is the Aug. 1 trade deadline to spur some interest in a KC team headed straight for a 100-plus loss season. The Royals are going to sell, perhaps in a big way, with Aroldis Chapman at the top of a list of possible trade chips that could include Scott Barlow, Taylor Clarke, Matt Duffy, Amir Garrett, Brad Keller, and perhaps even MJ Melendez.

Whoever they deal, though, general manager J. J. Picollo must avoid making three trade market mistakes. What are they?

The KC Royals shouldn't make trades just for the sake of fan interest

Diving into headline-making but ultimately meaningless deals is a temptation teams like the Royals sometimes find hard to resist. Trapped in hopeless seasons, such clubs seek trades to pique dwindling fan interest only to consummate deals that make no long-term sense.

Giving into the lure of selling a few more tickets is a mistake Picollo can't make. His club is already saddled with players whose claims to roster spots make little sense; adding more will only hurt the franchise. It's better to make no deals than poor, ill-conceived ones.

Moving on to mistake No. 2 to avoid...