Royals trade Brett Phillips to Rays
The Kansas City Royals traded outfielder Brett Phillips to the Tampa Bay Rays for minor-league shortstop Lucius Fox on Thursday, the teams announced.
Phillips is a gifted defender who's accumulated 22 defensive runs saved throughout his four major-league seasons. He's only managed a .205/.282/.344 slash line at the dish.
The 26-year-old will join a Rays outfield mix that already features Austin Meadows and Hunter Renfroe, as well as other defensive studs in Kevin Kiermaier and Manuel Margot.
American League MVP candidate Brandon Lowe has also seen reps in Tampa's outfield this season.
Fox split the 2019 campaign between the Rays' Double-A and Triple-A affiliates. He hit .221/.331/.327 with 34 RBIs and 39 steals in 119 games last season.
The 23-year-old native of the Bahamas ranked 26th among Rays prospects before the trade, according to MLB Pipeline.
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