CHICAGO — By all accounts, Whit Merrifield wanted badly to be part of the Kansas City Royals’ next contending team. Instead, he’s the latest veteran traded away to make way for the new core of young players the Royals hope to build their next contender around.
The catalyst atop the Royals lineup for most of his tenure, a versatile defender and a two-time All-Star, Whit Merrifield has been one of the faces of the major league club in recent years who set the franchise’s standard as an iron man, and he will wear another organization’s uniform for the first time in his career.
The Royals completed a trade that will send Merrifield to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for infielder Samad Taylor and right-handed pitcher Max Castillo on Tuesday, shortly before the MLB trade deadline.
