Potential trade candidate: Luis Robert Jr.

The former All-Star is a gamble, but the upside is huge.

With spring training set to begin in just a few weeks, the Royals may be done adding to the team. General manager J.J. Picollo said back in December that the team was 75 percent done with their offseason, having accomplished their main goals of bringing back Michael Wacha and adding an on-base hitter in Jonathan India.

But there is still the possibility the Royals could add to the offense and add a middle-of-the-order bat through a trade, as they were rumored to do earlier this off-season. One target that is available is sitting right in their division - White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. According to Chicago reporter Bruce Levine of The Score, the former All-Star is available in “the right deal.”

The Cuban-born outfielder was signed by the White Sox and made his debut in 2020, finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting while earning his only Gold Glove award in centerfield. He missed three months with a tear of his right hip flexor the next season, but was sensational when healthy, hitting .338/.378/.567 with 13 home runs in 68 games. He battled injuries in 2022, limiting him to 98 games

In 2023, Robert was benched in April for not hustling out a groundball, later revealing he had a hamstring injury that he did not disclose to then-manager Pedro Grifol. Robert would go on to have a terrific season with a line of .264/.315/.542 and a career-best 38 home runs with 20 steals. He earned his only All-Star appearance and finished 12th in MVP voting. He a

Robert re-injured his hip flexor early in the 2024 season and missed two months. When he returned, he wasn’t quite the same hitter and he had a disastrous final two months of the season, finishing with a line of .224/.278/.379 and a career-worst OPS+ of 87.

Robert has had an inconsistent track record, but his upside is quite high. He has enough power to hit at Kauffman Stadium - 32 of his 38 home runs in 2023 would have been gone in KC. His speed would add another dimension to the lineup as well. He strikes out a ton - his strike-out rate of 30 percent over the last two seasons is the second-highest in baseball. But he plays terrific defense at a premium position in center.

Robert is just 27 years old and has a pretty flexible contract, part of a long-term deal he signed with the White Sox when he first came up. He will earn $15 million this season, then has two club options at $20 million per year with a $2 million buyout. In a piece earlier this off-season, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic wrote that there is a wide gulf between what the White Sox want for Robert and what other teams are willing to give up.

“I don’t think they understand what his value is,” the executive said.

The White Sox, naturally, bristle at the notion they are overreaching, according to a source briefed on their thinking. Their position is that the suitors for Robert essentially want something for nothing. They aren’t asking for multiple prospects, the source said, but want a “meaningful piece” in return.

Robert does have a history of having trouble staying on the field, but the potential upside both offensively and defensively, the need for an outfield bat, and his flexible contract, all make him a pretty attractive play for the Royals. Would a trade including a top five prospect (not Jac Caglianone or Blake Mitchell) plus someone like Chicago native Michael Massey and maybe a “lottery ticket” type prospect be enough? It would be a gamble for sure, but this is the time to gamble a bit. The White Sox seem to know the Royals organization fairly well, so perhaps a deal can be struck.

What do you think? Is Robert worth the gamble? What would you be willing to give up?