Mon, Jul 11, 2022 at 11:45am

PROSPECT DREW WATERS DEALT TO KC

The Kansas City Royals acquired outfielder Drew Waters, pitcher Andrew Hoffmann and infielder CJ Alexander from the Atlanta Braves for a competitive balance draft pick in 2022 (No. 35 overall).

What does it give the Kansas City Royals
The Royals get a quality center field prospect in Waters, who was blocked in Atlanta by Michael Harris II. With Kansas City, Waters should take over in the middle of the outfield fairly soon. Hoffmann is also a solid prospect and could move more quickly as a young pitcher in KC's system. Alexander looks like more of a throw-in for this deal than a true prospect.

What does it give the Atlanta Braves
The motivation for Atlanta here was to acquire the 35th overall selection in the upcoming 2022 MLB Draft. Waters is a loss but he was never going to play ahead of either Harris II or right-fielder Ronald Acuna Jr. Therefore, the Braves decided to package Waters with Hoffmann and Alexander in order to gain an extra early pick in this year's draft.

Fantasy impact
Waters' fantasy fortunes have improved greatly after this trade. If he is available in most league formats, he should be picked up A S A P. Hoffmann could be scooped up in deep keeper formats at this time. He is definitely on the fantasy radar now. Alexander can be safely ignored for the time being.