The Colorado Rapids knew they had a special player long before Australian center back Lucas Herrington even arrived at the club to take part in his first training session.Herrington first made his senior debut at 17 in December 2024 for Brisbane Roar, and the Rapids began scouting him intently. By the following spring, a deal was struck for Herrington to join the Rapids the following winter, after he turned 18.Between signing Herrington in May and his arrival in January, the club could have turned a profit on a transfer to Europe, sources briefed on the situation say, with clubs calling.“Our guys did a great job of jumping on this opportunity quickly, producing the type of intel we needed to see and made the recommendation that we couldn’t wait, we needed to jump on,” Rapids president Pádraig Smith told The Athletic. Twenty appearances and less than seven months after his MLS debut, Herrington is on the move again, now to Hull City in an historic deal worth up to $23 million, sources say, easily a club record for Colorado and one of the most expensive deals in MLS history.An athletic, ball-playing center back, Herrington’s quality and potential were quickly apparent this year. Over the last seven months, Herrington made his senior national team debut and featured at a World Cup.Herrington, who turns 19 in September, is one of the players Hull City has invested in as they prepare for a return to the Premier League.“There’s no doubt it’s a big step but he has the talent, and more importantly, the mentality and character to adapt to that level,” Smith said. “I think his ceiling is huge. He can play at the very highest level. He will prove MLS players are ready to take that step.”Herrington won a starting spot immediately for the Rapids and continued his impressive performances from Brisbane in Colorado straight away. He was firmly on the radar of clubs abroad and it was only a matter of time before interest turned to bids.