When fans think of the trade that brought the Kansas City Royals to the ALCS, they often think of the deal with the Rays that netted ace James Shields.
They wouldn't be entirely wrong.
Shields has been the big game pitcher the Royals hoped for, and certainly has been a key piece in the current playoff run.
But the trade that really got the Royals to where they are today, the trade that really helped change the culture and makeup of the organization, was the trade that sent pitcher Zach Greinke and shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt to the Milwaukee Brewers for right-handers Jake Odorizzi and Jeremy Jeffress, outfielder Lorenzo Cain and shortstop Alcides Escobar.
"That was the trade that really started making us look different athletically," Royals legend George Brett said. "You could see at that point the direction Dayton was taking us."
Dayton is General Manager Dayton Moore. Moore knew that the league was trending toward more speed and athleticism, and in a park as big as Kauffman Stadium, the Royals needed to get more capable defensively and faster on the base paths.
"I knew one of the first things we had to do was work on defending all that acreage," Moore said. Kauffman Stadium's outfield is the second biggest in all of baseball.
"We needed speed and we needed to get way more athletic at just about every position," Moore said.
Cain and Escobar have played pivotal roles defensively for the Royals all season long, and especially in the postseason. Escobar has found a home offensively at the top of the lineup for the Royals, and Cain hit .301 this season.
Jeffress didn't last long in Kansas City. But Odorizzi eventually became a key piece in the trade that landed Shields with the Royals.
"The reason you have players in your farm system such as (Odorizzi) is to make your big-league club better," Moore said. "They either fill holes you have at the big-league level or you utilize them in trades to fill your holes. That's how you survive."
There is word that teams like the Minnesota Twins - who the Royals have outpaced in the American League Central in recent seasons - are looking to Kansas City as a model for success.
"They have a big field at Target (Field), too," a scout said. "There is space to cover. And they look at the Royals as a team to emulate in terms of getting enough speed to cover that space. They are tired of seeing balls drop in."
