Seth Lugo reeled off another productive start this afternoon, tossing six innings of two-run ball to earn the win at Wrigley Field. The veteran right-hander now carries a 2.95 earned run average with a 22% strikeout rate. This was his 11th quality start in 19 appearances.
Kansas City took two out of three from the Cubs, but they’re still three games under .500. They’re off tomorrow before home series against the Guardians and Braves that’ll take them to the deadline. Lugo would be lined up for one more start against Atlanta until the Royals need to decide on his future. He’ll very likely decline his $15MM player option for next season. Kansas City’s win today pulled them back within four games of the final AL Wild Card spot, pending Boston’s game in Philadelphia. The Rays, Guardians and Rangers all stand between them and Boston.
The Royals would get plenty of calls on Lugo, who’d be one of the best short-term starting pitchers on the market if K.C. made him available. Jon Morosi of the MLB Network reported yesterday that the Cubs were among the teams that have had conversations with Kansas City about their pitching. Morosi added that the Royals are unsurprisingly more likely to trade Lugo than they would be to part with southpaw Kris Bubic. ESPN’s Jeff Passan hears similarly, writing that the Royals are more focused on Lugo at the moment.
That doesn’t mean Lugo is a lock to move. Passan adds that if the Royals feel they’re still in the Wild Card mix, they could keep the veteran right-hander and make him a qualifying offer when he hits free agency. That would at least ensure them a compensatory draft pick if Lugo walks. That’d come after the first round if he landed at least a $50MM guarantee; it’d come between the end of Competitive Balance Round B and the beginning of the third round (roughly 75th overall) if his contract is below $50MM.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic also suggests that the Royals have yet to decide whether to deal Lugo. He writes that Kansas City feels they’d have a decent chance to re-sign him as a free agent — following a similar path to last winter’s new deal with Michael Wacha after he opted out. If the Royals were to trade Lugo, Rosenthal adds that they’d want controllable outfield help. K.C.’s longstanding issue getting any kind of offense from their outfielders makes that a logical target.
The opt-out clause in Lugo’s contract is a somewhat complicating factor. While he’d very likely be a…
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