Kansas City Royals: It is time to move Whit Merrifield

Whit Merrifiel has arguably been the best player on the Kansas City Royals over the past few years. That is why they need to trade him.

Since Whit Merrifield was promoted to the Kansas City Royals, he has been one of the better players on their roster. The Royals leadoff man has led the league in hits and steals twice, while providing plenty of defensive flexibility. Under team control through 2023 due to an extremely team friendly extension, Merrifield is the type of piece that any team would covet.

Understandably, his name has swirled in trade rumors over the past year. The Royals are still in the midst of their rebuild, and a player like Merrifield would seemingly bring back a strong return. Nonetheless, general manager Dayton Moore has been adamant that Merrifield is not going anywhere.

It may be time to rethink that sentiment. While Merrifield has notched his first career 200 hit season, there are signs of slippage. The two time defending AL stolen base champion has just 19 steals this season, and has been caught a league leading ten times. That may be due to his falling nearly ten percentile points in speed, as Merrifield dropped from the 95th percentile to the 85.6th percentile in his sprinting.

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Nonetheless, Merrifield’s value may never be higher when it comes to a potential deal. While defensive metrics are not fond of his play at second, he would be an upgrade for most teams offensively at the position. Meanwhile, he has graded out as an above average outfielder, particularly in center.

While the Royals have a plethora of pitching talent coming through the minors, chances are they will not be ready to make an impact until 2021 or 2022. By that time, Merrifield will already be 33 years old based on the earliest time frame. Considering he is already showing signs of slippage, however slight as it may be, Merrifield may not be that same player once the Royals are ready to contend.

Instead, it is time to look towards the future, and add other assets that can help the Kansas City Royals build their next championship team. Whit Merrifield, as great as he has been, is not likely to be a part of that roster.