The Royals have bolstered their bullpen with the acquisition of right-hander , as the Nationals announced that Harvey will head to K.C. in exchange for third baseman and the Royals Competitive Balance Round A pick (39th overall) in the 2024 draft. The Royals also announced the move, as well as the news that right-hander has been designated for a signment to create roster space for Harvey. Todays 5-0 lo s to the Red Sox dropped the Royals to a 52-44 record, and a game back of Boston for the third and final AL wild card slot. Playing .542 baseball is already an impre sive step forward for a team that lost 106 games in 2023, yet Kansas City clearly has eyes on bouncing back from some recent struggles. The Royals started the season at a blistering 39-26 pace, but have since stumbled to a 13-18 mark in their last 31 games, and relief pitching has been a major reason behind this slide. The K.C. bullpen ranks in the bottom third of baseball in most major categories, including 22nd in bullpen ERA (4.30). has converted 17 of 21 save chances but has been somewhat shaky, and the Royals relief corps is lacking in both velocity and strikeout ability. Recent reports that Kansas City was considering the bullpen as a top need heading into the trade deadline, even ahead of the Royals also-pre sing need for outfield upgrades. Harvey and his 97.8mph fastball provide some immediate high-leverage zip in the Royals pen, and Harvey also has above-average strikeout and walk rates over his 45 innings this season out of Washingtons bullpen. While he has a 4.20 ERA, Harveys SIERA is 2.99, as a .325 BABIP has contributed to make Harveys bottom-line results an insufficient reflection of his quality pitching. Selected 22nd overall by the Orioles in the 2013 draft, Harvey drew top-100 prospect attention before a variety of injuries threatened to halt his career before it ever got off the ground. He had a 3.42 ERA over 23 2/3 innings and 26 appearances for Baltimore during the 2019-21 seasons, but the Giants claimed him off waivers in November 2021, and Frank Howard Jersey Harvey then moved to Washington on another waiver claim just prior to the start of the 2022 campaign. This time with the Nationals allowed Harvey to establish himself as a solid MLB-caliber arm, even if he has flown under the radar during the teams rebuild. Harvey has a 3.17 ERA, 27.8% strikeout rate, and 6.4% walk rate in 145 innings for D.C., working mostly as a setup man but with 10 saves to his ledger in 2023. Hard contact is a big red flag in Harveys arsenal, but he has done a pa sably good job of keeping this hard contact from translating into home runs. Moving to spacious Kauffman Stadium could further help the 29-year-old Harvey in this regard. Harvey is earning a $2.35MM salary this season in his second-last year of arbitration eligibility, so the Royals also control him through the end of the 2025 campaign. This extra year of control made Harvey a particularly interesting player to watch heading into the July 30 deadline, and both Harvey and Nats closer (also controlled through 2025) cracked the top 15 of MLBTRs recent listing of . Since teams generally have to pay a bit extra to complete deals further in advance of the deadline, that factor plus Harveys extra year of control and perhaps the Royals eagerne s to quickly correct their bullpen struggles combined to give Washington a pretty nice return. The rebuilding Nationals stayed within striking distance of the NL wild card race, but todays trade leaves no doubt that the Nats will remain on their expected path as sellers heading into the deadline. This doesnt mean that Washington might not seek out some players that could help them be competitive as early as 2025, and Wallace could potentially fit that category, as he is currently in his second season of Double-A ball. A second-round pick for the Royals in the 2022 draft, Wallace is hitting .282/.350/.427 over 140 plate appearances for Double-A Northwest Arkansas this season, but he has been slowed by both an oblique strain and an ongoing IL stint for a broken rib. These injuries have slowed his development, but MLB Pipeline still ranks Wallace as the second-best prospect in the Kansas City farm system, and Baseball America ranked him fifth in their preseason ranking of Royals minor leaguers. Both scouting reports consider him a good defensive player with the ability to remain at third base due to a strong throwing arm, and Wallace has a good approach at the plate and a solid swing. He has power potential moreso than obvious power at the moment, so Pipeline and BA view Wallace as a gap hitter with some upside as he develops. Trading a third baseman of the future candidate like Wallace serves as an endorsement of the Royals faith in in at least the short term, even if Kansas City might now look for some help at the hot corner down the road perhaps as soon as tomorrows draft. As noted by , the Nationals have now given themselves lot of third base depth for the future, with Wallace joining (ranked by Pipeline as the 44th-best prospect in all of baseball) and in the minor league ranks. This could be a potential surplus position for the Nationals in the coming years, if they return to contention and start moving their own internal prospects for more win-now veterans. The are the only types of draft picks that can be traded, and as such are quietly some of the most valued trade chips in all of baseball. Any team can trade for CBR picks, but since smaller-market and lower-revenue teams are the only clubs eligible for these bonus selections in the first place, trades involving the picks are relatively rare, given how adding talent through the draft is of such particular value for the games le ser spenders. Still, todays trade marks the third CBR pick of the 2024 draft to change hands the Brewers acquired the 34th overall pick from the Orioles as part of the , while the White Sox landed the 68th overall pick (in CBR Round B) as part of that sent to the Mariners. The Royals select sixth overall in tomorrows draft, and now wont pick again until their second-round choice (41st overall). The Nationals now have three selections within the first 44 picks, with their newly-acquired CBR selection sandwiched between their first- and second-round slots. Anderson came to the Royals in a trade with the Braves last November, as Kansas City had interest in seeing if the former Rays bullpen ace could regain his form after three injury-marred seasons. Over 34 2/3 innings for the Royals this season, Anderson had a 4.15 ERA and not much in the way of secondary metrics, as he posted a 10.1% walk rate and 18.1% strikeout rate. Anderson is earning $1.575MM this season, and he is arb-controlled through 2025, which could add some attraction for any club interested in adding bullpen depth via waiver claim. Anderson has now pa sed the five-year threshold for MLB service time due to being on the Royals active roster all season, and would thus retain all of his 2024 salary if he clears waivers and becomes a free agent. Brandon Beachy Jersey