Royals tweaked travel plans to avoid awkward situation at MLB trade deadline
Here’s a story that seems pertinent considering it’s the last day of July.
The Royals were traveling to New York for a series against the Yankees in July 2022, and players on the plane knew something was brewing.
It was days before the Major League Baseball trade deadline and rumors were swirling about the future of Andrew Benintendi. Not long after the Royals got to their hotel in New York, Benintendi learned he’d been traded to the Yankees.
Benintendi’s first move as a member of the Yankees? Since he was already in New York, he continued playing cards with his ex-Royals teammates, as a MLB.com story recounted.
“It’s definitely a weird situation, lacing it up with them yesterday and going against them today,” Benintendi told MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch at the time. “That flight, we all knew something was probably going to happen. So when I found out last night, I got to hang out in the room with a couple of guys and say, ‘See you tomorrow.’ It’s exciting and I’m looking forward to these four games.”
The MLB trade deadline is Thursday at 5 p.m., and it just so happens the Royals will be traveling again. They open a three-game series Friday against the American League East-leading Blue Jays in Toronto.
To avoid a potentially uncomfortable situation, the Royals are leaving later than usual on Thursday, which is an off-day. Their flight will depart Kansas City 30 minutes after the deadline passes.
“It’s awkward, right?” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “But you’ve got to travel the day before the game, so we pushed it to after the deadline. In case something does happen, we’ll be able to notify guys instead of taking them or then having them have to turn around from Toronto.
“We’ll do the best we can to communicate. It’ll be over before we take off. So that’s the idea. We’ll hold on until after the deadline.”
That seems like a prudent decision.
This story was originally published July 31, 2025 at 9:00 AM.
