CHICAGO -- With the July 31 Trade Deadline coming up, this week marked an important one for the Royals. If they wanted to pave their way out of being sellers at the Deadline, the team needed to take care of business against the Cubs to begin the week.
Kansas City did just that by taking two of three from one of the best teams in baseball, including an 8-4 win to close out the series on Wednesday afternoon at Wrigley Field. Homers by Vinnie Pasquantino (two), Salvador Perez and Tyler Tolbert, plus a quality start from Seth Lugo powered the victory.
“Any time you can go on the road and beat a team of this caliber, that’s a good sign for you as a team,” Pasquantino said. “We had a tough one down in Miami, and we come up here and have a good one in Chicago.”
When the Royals entered the week, they knew the next nine or so games would be important. The first step was playing well on the road against the Cubs. The series win moved Kansas City to just 4 1/2 games back of the final American League Wild Card spot.
The next step is to try to move up in the Wild Card standings with an important three-game series at Kauffman Stadium beginning on Friday against the Guardians. Kansas City was 1 1/2 games back of Cleveland for second place in the AL Central, pending the Guardians' result Wednesday night against the O's.
“We believe in this group of guys,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “We’ve had injuries just like everybody else, but at the same time, we believe we can play good baseball and win a lot of games. I mean, this is the best team in the National League we just played, and [we went] toe-to-toe with those guys.”
One Royals player who has been thrown around in potential trade discussions is Lugo. He has been a major part of the team’s success this year, posting a 2.95 ERA across 113 innings.
Despite being mentioned constantly in rumors, Lugo has kept his mind off the whole Trade Deadline speculation. He continues to just focus on his day-to-day routine while preparing for his next start.
“I started today, we got an off-day tomorrow, and then it’s back to work after that,” Lugo said. “Control what I can control and go about my routine, go about my business.”
Lugo continued his strong season, throwing six innings of two-run ball to earn his 11th quality start. The right-hander has been a valuable piece in Kansas City’s rotation throughout 2025 and could be one of the few pieces moved at the Trade Deadline if the Royals emerge as sellers.
The 35-year-old veteran has a player option after this season, but the Royals are hoping it doesn’t come to that.
“We talked to the whole team about it,” Quatraro said before the game. “His name is prevalent, especially [in Chicago]. I’m aware of that. We talked about it openly, understanding we like what we have here. Particularly with Seth, he’s been such a huge part of what we’ve done, and we really believe that if we can string some good games together, we can get back in this thing.”
The Royals are surely doing everything they can to play their way into being non-sellers at the Trade Deadline. The pitching has carried them for most of the year, and now, the offense is showing signs of breaking out.
The team has scored at least seven runs in four of its six games since returning from the All-Star break. Pasquantino did most of the heavy lifting on Wednesday with two home runs and four RBIs, and Perez continued his hot July stretch by launching his fifth home run over the past five games.
“This is our team, and I’m part of it,” Lugo said. “I want to be here through the thick and thin. It’s a good clubhouse. It’s a good team. We just got to be more consistent and keep playing like we can.”
With the Trade Deadline looming, the Royals know they must continue playing well, otherwise one of their key veterans could be shipped off.
“I’d really like to see him with a Royals jersey on [for] his next start, and we’re trying to make that happen,” Pasquantino said while pointing toward Lugo’s locker. “That’s kind of up to us.”