The Kansas City Royals have a 4.5-game lead in the American League Central, but Christina Kahrl writes that Dayton Moore should look to acquire Johnny Cueto ahead of the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.

The Cincinnati Reds are expected to move Cueto, who is scheduled to become a free agent at the end of the season.

"Why Johnny Cueto works for the Royals, perhaps more than for any other team that might put itself into that kind of conversation, is because of how he fits into this team," Kahrl writes. "Durability is the question mark that Cueto has been tagged with after three DL stints in 2013 for shoulder trouble and more recent worries associated with his elbow. Say Ned Yost manages that risk aggressively, and say Cueto is more of a six- to seven-inning guy in the DH league -- that isn’t a problem for K.C., not on this team. With a bullpen this deep and a defense this good, that helps take the pressure off Cueto to try to be something more than he is -- merely one of baseball’s best starters, despite pitching in the homer-happy Gap."