KANSAS CITY -- The Royals made their second trade in as many days on Monday evening when they sent reliever Jose Cuas to the Cubs for Nelson Velázquez, a 24-year-old outfielder who has been added to the 40-man roster and optioned to Triple-A Omaha.

TRADE DETAILS
Royals get: OF Nelson Vel¨¢zquez
Cubs get: RHP Jose Cuas

Vel¨¢zquez had a .934 OPS in 13 big league games for the Cubs season, with five of his seven hits going for extra bases, including three home runs. He¡¯s spent the majority of the season with Triple-A Iowa, where he¡¯s posted an .802 OPS with 16 homers. In 90 career games with the Cubs over the last two seasons, Vel¨¢zquez has slashed .210/.290/.407 with nine home runs.

¡°We like his power potential,¡± general manager J.J. Picollo said. ¡°... By our count, he hits the ball hard and drives the ball. There¡¯s very little chase. There¡¯s some swing-and-miss that we think we need to address, but again, just trying to add depth and options for us at the right-hand side of the plate in the outfield. We thought it was a good fit.¡±

The Cubs¡¯ fifth-round pick in 2017 out of P.J. Education (Puerto Rico), Vel¨¢zquez is a natural outfielder with a strong arm and can play all three positions, but Picollo said the Royals envision him as a corner outfielder. They¡¯d like to see him in the big leagues this season, but first they¡¯ll get to know him better in Omaha first while waiting for an opportunity.

Cuas, 29, signed as a Minor League free agent with the Royals in 2021 and made his memorable Major League debut last season. He has appeared in 45 games for the Royals this season, posting a 4.54 ERA with 52 strikeouts and 21 walks.

The move clears a bullpen spot for the Royals, who would like to see a number of Triple-A pitchers in Kansas City later this season, and gives them reliable depth in the outfield in Vel¨¢zquez. It comes a day after the Royals traded infielder Nicky Lopez to the Braves for lefty reliever Taylor Hearn?and likely will not be the last move the Royals make as Tuesday¡¯s 5 p.m. CT Trade Deadline nears. Closer Scott Barlow is still on the trading block, and the Royals could move on a couple more players like righty relievers Taylor Clarke and Carlos Hern¨¢ndez, starter Ryan Yarbrough and outfielder Edward Olivares.?

The core of the Royals¡¯ team -- the young position players and pitchers they see as the foundation for their future -- haven¡¯t been made available this Deadline. Picollo confirmed Monday that there was some interest in starter Brady Singer -- the Dodgers have reportedly checked in on the 26-year-old righty -- but said it would have to be a ¡°very large¡± deal to move on from Singer, who has two more years of control left, and ¡°it doesn¡¯t seem like that¡¯s something that¡¯s happening.¡±

Picollo also squashed any rumors of conversations involving veteran catcher Salvador Perez, who has 10-and-5 rights and would have to approve any trade. So for the Royals, this Deadline is about improving on the margins as they look to their core to improve internally.

¡°We¡¯re looking at the reliever market, and a reliever market may not return a large player or somebody that¡¯s going to greatly impact our current core,¡± Picollo said. ¡°If we can improve marginally along the way and help with pieces, that¡¯s probably what we¡¯re going to get done through this Deadline.¡±

Deals like the swap on Monday are what they¡¯re looking to add: Vel¨¢zquez is a young player with upside who supplements the Royals¡¯ core by giving them depth. They¡¯ve maintained that they would prefer to add Major League-ready talent in these trades. But that might not always be available to acquire, and the Royals have made clear over the last month that they won¡¯t turn away from adding young prospects years away from Kansas City.

¡°We need help in a lot of areas,¡± Picollo said. ¡°Our farm system needs help. Our Major League team needs help. So it comes down to the team that has interest in whatever player they¡¯re asking about, where¡¯s their depth? What are they willing to deal from? ¡­ I¡¯d like to think we can get guys to help our Major League team a little bit sooner.?

¡°But that¡¯s not always going to be the case. It doesn¡¯t deter us from making a trade. If there¡¯s value in somebody that¡¯s in A-ball, we¡¯ve got to be open-minded to that as well.¡±