Wacky Royals Trade Idea From ESPN Would Bring Twins' Byron Buxton To KC
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As the Kansas City Royals try to creep back into the Wild Card hunt, it's obvious that an extra All-Star outfielder would dramatically increase their playoff odds.
However, there aren't many All-Stars, especially those who made the team in 2025, who can be had at this time of year. The trade deadline is going to be highly intriguing for these Royals, who could ostensibly be buyers or sellers, and the same is true of a great many teams.
Kansas City's division rival, the Minnesota Twins, are undoubtedly in that category. In fact, even though the Twins and Royals are in a virtual tie in the standings, Minnesota might be the more likely seller, because they've been trying to shed payroll.
That led ESPN's David Schoenfield to mull the possibility of a wild trade hypothetical: Would the Twins consider shipping center fielder Byron Buxton to Kansas City?
On Tuesday, Schoenfield proposed that a deal involving Buxton for starting pitcher Cole Ragans and top pitching prospect David Shields could make some sense, though he certainly didn't predict Buxton would be on the move.
"The Royals' challenge trade with Ragans is intriguing but risky for Minnesota, given he's on the injured list right now because of a rotator cuff strain," Schoenfield wrote. "Plus, intra-division trades are hard to pull off."
Buxton, in his second All-Star campaign, has an OPS of .879, 20 home runs, and 3.3 bWAR. He's under contract through 2028, and his 102 games played last season were his most since 2017 (140).
So giving up Ragans, who was an All-Star last season and comes with the same amount of team control, not to mention much cheaper control, sounds like quite a serious risk. And that's if the Twins would even give the Royals the opportunity to take that risk.
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Jackson Roberts is a former Division III All-Region DH who now writes and talks about sports for a living. A Bay Area native and a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Jackson makes his home in North Jersey. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, Patriots, and Warriors, and he recently added the Devils to his sports fandom mosaic. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding "Kansas City Royals On SI," please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org
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