All eyes are on the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers as the World Series began this week. Regardless of what fans think about these franchises, they pit some of the game's best players against each other, and Game 1 showed just how entertaining this series will be. However, the Kansas City Royals and other teams may be watching the World Series with an eye on offseason implications.

Yankees outfielder Juan Soto will be the free agent gem by a wide margin, but both World Series teams have several contributing players still waiting to become free agents. Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernández is certainly a potential target for the Royals, while backup players like Daniel Hudson and Blake Treinen could be valuable reinforcements. However, The athleteJim Bowden, MLB writer for , specifically linked the Royals to one of New York's three All-Stars last season – reliever Clay Holmes.

Could the KC Royals bolster their bullpen with a 2024 New York Yankees All-Star selection?

After a successful career in the Big Apple, Holmes now has two All-Star awards to his name. The right-hander's 3.14 ERA in 67 games this season is actually his worst since joining the Yankees – he posted ERAs under 3.00 in 2022 and 2023 – but despite handing over the closing role to the former Royals player in August With Luke Weaver lost, Holmes recorded a career-high 30 saves in 2024. Although he struggled down the stretch, his 3.52 ERA remains quite acceptable this postseason.

Bowden called the Royals one of the “best teams” for Holmes, along with the Yankees, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies. The former MLB manager emphasized Holmes' value as a setter rather than expecting him to be a team's new dominant closer. The Holmes/Weaver pairing worked well for New York across the board, and pairing Holmes with Royals reliever Lucas Erceg could repeat that success.

Clay Holmes fits the needs and price range of the KC Royals

One of the key areas of improvement for Kansas City this offseason may be the bullpen, and moving closer to the former Yankees would be a significant step in that direction. Holmes has posted four consecutive seasons with an fWAR of 1.0 or higher, with the majority of that production occurring in New York. He debuted with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2018, but didn't show the performance of an elite bullpen arm until he suited up for the Yankees.

Bowden predicted that Holmes could sign a two-year deal worth $18.5 million this offseason – a contract that appears to be well within the Royals' price range. Of course, Holmes needs to focus on the Dodgers' impressive roster first before thinking about a bigger payday.