Buyers or sellers? The Royals have a difficult choice to make as deadline nears
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Royals hover near AL Wild Card race with key decisions looming by July 31 deadline.
- Trade rumors swirl around Seth Lugo, who could opt out after 2025 season.
- Kansas City likely to retain top prospects but remains open to offers for upgrades.
The Royals have a major decision to make.
In less than a week, they face a pivotal reality of the 2025 season: They must decide whether to launch a full-scale playoff push or chart a course with next year in mind.
And the clock is ticking.
The Major League Baseball trade deadline is set for Thursday, July 31 at 5 p.m. Central Time. Until then, it’s the last opportunity for all 30 clubs to acquire talent through trades ... or perhaps send away some of their own talent in exchange for prospects of tomorrow.
“We want to compete and get in the playoffs this year, but we also want to have a competitive team,” Royals general manager J.J. Picollo told The Star’s Pete Grathoff this week. “So I think this team’s very capable of staying in this race, and we’re playing a lot of the opponents that are right there with us.”
The Royals enter this weekend’s home series against the Cleveland Guardians with a record just under .500, at 50-53. After that comes another series at Kauffman Stadium, against the Atlanta Braves. This is the final homestand before the trade deadline arrives.
So what might the Royals do at the trade deadline? Buy or sell? Here is a closer look at where things stand.
What to do with Seth Lugo?
Pitcher Seth Lugo arrived in Kansas City on a mission last season. He wanted to show that he could be a full-time starter after spending the majority of his major-league career as a reliever.
And the Royals were the perfect landing spot.
Lugo produced a stellar 2024 campaign. He earned his first All-Star nod and finished second in balloting for the American League Cy Young Award. He made 33 starts, going 16-9 with a 3.00 ERA in a career-high 206 and 2/3 innings.
The 35-year-old right-hander has continued his ascension this season. He has a 2.95 ERA in 19 starts and was stellar against the Chicago Cubs in Wednesday’s victory.
So the Royals face a conundrum: Lugo controls his own destiny, as he holds a $15 million player option for the 2026 season. He will either choose to decline it and become a free agent or play out the contract.
Before then, the Royals face a business decision of their own. Lugo could net them a haul of prospects via a trade. If he stays past the trade deadline, he could ultimately elect for free agency and chase a long-term contract elsewhere.
In the latter scenario, the Royals would need to extend Lugo a qualifying offer or lose him for practically nothing.
There is no indication the Royals will move Lugo. However, his name is circulating in trade rumors as other playoff contenders search for starting pitching.
From the Royals’ perspective, they need offensive help. Lugo is a trade chip who could alleviate some of their lineup concerns. KC could use another outfielder, consistency in the middle of the order.
Expect the Royals to listen to all offers but also be content keeping Lugo if an attractive trade proposal fails to materialize.
How about Kris Bubic + Carlos Estévez?
The Royals haven’t made their deadline position clear. There are different scenarios at play in which they could operate as either a buyer or possibly as a seller.
In recent games, the club has shown promising signs at the plate. The Royals have scored seven or more runs in four of their last six games.
Team captain Salvador Perez has been red-hot since the All-Star break, with nine homers in his last 13 games. Superstar shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. and first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino are rolling, too, and a host of other contributors continue to step up daily.
The Royals sit just 4 and 1/2 games out of the final AL Wild Card spot. The remaining schedule appears to be in their favor, with games against the Guardians, Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays still to come. Each of those teams is currently ahead of KC in the wild-card chase.
It’s possible the Royals will decide to be buyers at the trade deadline. Yet, there are reasons to believe their current offense will continue to be plagued with inconsistency.
If the Royals happen to stumble in coming days, they could decide to be sellers — and that might draw All-Star pitchers Kris Bubic and Carlos Estévez into the discussion.
Multiple teams could utilize either player. Bubic is having a career season as a starter but has one year of arbitration remaining before hitting free agency. Estévez, the Royals’ closer, is due $10 million in 2026 and has a club option for 2027.
Both have already been the subject of trade whispers. The Royals are not likely to move either player, as each holds a vital role. Kansas City’s front office will listen, but the price tag would reportedly be steep for teams looking to acquire either of these All-Stars.
Would the Royals part with top prospects?
The Royals have some intriguing names in their farm system. For instance, a lot has been made of their catching prospects, Blake Mitchell and Carter Jensen, who are matriculating toward the majors.
Jensen, 22, has posted a stellar minor-league campaign. He is hitting .289 with 13 home runs and 58 RBIs in 84 games and has made the jump to Triple-A Omaha.
Major-League fans got a closer look at Jensen during the 2025 All-Star Futures Game. He put on a show during batting practice — his raw power stood out. Per reports, Jensen hit 10 home runs during the pre-game session at Truist Park in Atlanta.
Mitchell, meanwhile, is working his way back from a hand injury suffered in spring training. He is at High-A Quad Cities right now.
Another catcher to watch is Ramon Ramirez, who is making waves in the lower levels of the minors.
The Royals also have a trio of young pitching prospects in their system. Right-handers Ben Kudrna and Steven Zobac and left-hander David Shields continue to develop this season.
It’s unlikely the Royals are eager to move any of their top prospects at the trade deadline. But if they want to add a big bat, it could come at the expense of one of these guys.
So what are the Royals most likely to do?
The Royals could take it right down to the wire at the trade deadline. For the players’ part, especially the veterans, they understand that how a club operates is mostly out of their hands.
“The mindset as a player never changes,” Pasquantino said. “We’re always pushing for the playoffs at all times. But it’s a business. Teams have to make business decisions.”
Pasquantino and his teammates can influence those decisions. The Royals must win games and remain in the playoff mix in order to keep their current roster together — and perhaps even augment it.
That starts with this weekend’s series against the Guardians and continues with the games that remain until this year’s trade deadline.
And that just may sway the Royals in one direction or the other between now and late Thursday afternoon.
This story was originally published July 25, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Buyers or sellers? The Royals have a difficult choice to make as deadline nears."
