The Pittsburgh Pirates have agreed to trade versatile infielder Adam Frazier to the Kansas City Royals. The stove is heating up, ever so slowly. Frazier may not be the impact piece he once was, but he can play multiple positions, including second base and the outfield.
In return the Pirates will acquire Cam Devanney, a 28-year-old shortstop in the Royals system. The trade was initially reported by FanSided MLB Insider Robert Murray. Frazier only had a .654 OPS on the season, but his .255 batting average suggests he could be a bench bat on a contending team, which the Pirates are certainly not.
This is likely the first of several deadline deals the Pirates make to rid their major-league roster of expiring assets.
For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot,our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop during the MLB season.
MLB trade grades: Who won the Pirates-Royals deal for Adam Frazier?
In return for Frazier, the Pirates received former Royals Triple-A shortstop Cam Devanney, who could receive his chance in Pittsburgh sooner than expected. Devanney has 18 home runs and a .931 OPS at Triple-A Omaha this season. He's not the best defensive player, but he does offer a lot of pop from the plate, which the Pirates are desperately missing right now.
This trade is somewhat perplexing from the Royals perspective. They are three games under .500 and likely out of the AL Central race already. However, they are just 4.5 games back of the final AL Wild Card spot. Frazier isn't going to move the needle much for them, but he's the kind of scrappy fan favorite contenders love to add around this time of year.
Royals starting second baseman Michael Massey is on the 10-day injured list as of this writing, so acquiring Frazier could serve as reinforcements right away. Massey and Mark Canha, who play the outfield for Kansas City, are also on the injured list.
Frazier was wasting away on the Pirates bench, and though he did receive some regular at-bats, he'll have a larger role for the Royals. In Pittsburgh, this is just the first of many changes that'll be made prior to late July. The likes of Mitch Keller, Ke'Bryan Hayes and Bryan Reynolds are all on the table. Paul Skenes won't be happy about it.