The Milwaukee Brewers have traded Norichika Aoki to the Kansas City Royals. Aoki, 31, a left-handed hitter from Japan, batted .286 last season primarily as the Brewers’ leadoff man. Aoki had eight home runs, 37 RBIs and 20 stolen bases in 32 attempts. His on-base percentage was .356. He ranked second in the Major Leagues with 40 infield hits, while he led the National League in singles (140), tied for seventh in multihit games (50), seventh in times reaching base (237) and tied for 10th in hits (171).

The Royals gave the Brewers Will Shields. Smith, 24, spent most of the season in the bullpen after being moved from a starting role at Triple-A Omaha. For Kansas City, he was 2-1 with a 3.24 ERA in 19 games, including one start. He was 6-4 and had a 3.03 ERA in 28 games (10 starts for Omaha).

This should be a good addition to the Royals. Now the Royals have a decision to change up the outfield lineup.