Sometimes the best deals are the ones you don’t make.
Last summer the Royals were hurtling towards 100 losses and needed some bold moves to rebuild the team. They entertained the thought of trading All-Star catcher Salvador Perez, with reports at the time indicating they discussed a potential deal with the Miami Marlins. According to a new article at The Athletic, they also discussed a potential trade with the Texas Rangers, that no only included Salvy, but pitcher Brady Singer.
According to Ken Rosenthal and Rustin Dodd, the Rangers were interested in adding starting pitching for their post-season push. The Royals and Rangers had already engaged in some discussions involving Salvador Perez when Rangers catcher Jonah Heim got injured, but the focus of Rangers GM Chris Young was on pitching. The former Royals pitcher turned to his old ballclub to ask about pitcher Brady Singer.
The Royals, according to sources from both teams who were briefed on the talks, told the Rangers that to move Singer, they would need to attach Perez and get back another controllable starter, righty Jon Gray. The Rangers were not interested in such a deal, and ended up acquiring Max Scherzer and Jordan Montgomery instead.
The Royals were looking to move Salvy’s $20 million-per-year salary to free up money to address other needs. Gray, an Oklahoma native who was drafted by the Royals out of high school but did not sign, was in the second year of a four-year, $56 million deal. A long-time mid-rotation starter, Gray finished last year with a 4.12 ERA in 29 starts, and has a 4.01 ERA in 85 innings this year. Salvy would have had to approve any trade, but he was reportedly open to being dealt to a contender.
The trade did not happen, and Royals GM J.J. Picollo is certainly glad that it didn’t. Singer has rebounded to put up a 3.20 ERA with 2.3 rWAR in 19 starts this year. And Salvador Perez continues to defy age with his ninth All-Star selection by hitting .282/.343/.477 with 17 home runs. Acquiring Gray probably means the Royals don’t sign Seth Lugo and/or Michael Wacha, both of whom have been very solid this year - or in Lugo’s case, excellent.
Sometimes the best deals are the ones you don’t make.
