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| Joakim Soria worked the eighth and ninth innings on Thursday to pick up his 19th save of the season as the Royals beat the Twins 5-4. Soria walked one and struck out two while not allowing a hit in his two innings. |
Our View: This is the third time this season that the Royals have used Soria for six outs, and he looked good converting today. He is one of the few bright spots on the Royals' roster, and he remains a very good fantasy closer despite the fact that his opportunities are limited.
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| Joakim Soria picked up his second six-out save of the past eight days on Sunday, giving up one run off two hits with three strikeouts. He now has 18 saves on the year. |
Our View: The Royals may not provide Soria with the most opportunities, but he continues to excel when they do. He should start to get a few more chances per month if manager Trey Hillman continues to be comfortable bringing him in in the eighth.
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| MLB.com is reporting that Royals' closer Joakim Soria is expected to be available on Monday after his two inning save on Saturday. Soria was unavailable on Sunday, but he should pitch the ninth if the Royals are on top Monday. |
Our View: The Royals have been cautious with Soria this season, making his two inning save somewhat of a surprise. You would think that as much trouble as the Royals have winning, the Mexicutioner should be well rested, but they can't afford to lose games in which they lead in the ninth inning. Expect Soria to get plenty of save opportunities the rest of the season, assuming the Royals actually win some games.
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| Joakim Soria nailed down his 14th save in tonight's 8-6 win at Boston. He did not allow any hits or walks over 1.1 innings, and fired one strikeout. |
Our View: Soria is 4-for-4 on save chances so far this month, and has not allowed any runs over his last six appearances.
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| Joakim Soria earned his 13th save of the season in tonight's 4-3 win at Detroit. He gave up one hit over one inning, and fired two strikeouts. |
Our View: Soria already has three saves in July, and has not allowed a run over his last five outings. He only had three saves in the entire month of June.
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| According to Jon Heyman of SI.com, the Royals are not interested in trading closer Joakim Soria. Soria, when healthy, is one of the more dominant closers in baseball. |
Our View: The Mexicutioner is really good, and it would be a terrible move by the Royals if they were to trade him. Expect Soria to be in a Royals uniform all season, and probably for several more years.
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| Joakim Soria nailed down his eighth save of the season in Tuesday's 2-1 win at Houston. He allowed two hits over one scoreless inning, and had no walks and two strikeouts. |
Our View: Soria picked up his first save of June, and only allowed one earned run over seven innings pitched in the month. Keep the Royals' closer active in fantasy lineups.
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| The Kansas City Star is reporting that the Royals have activated closer Joakim Soria for Tuesday's game. Soria had been on the DL with a strained right rotator cuff. |
Our View: Fantasy owners rejoice, because the Mexecutioner is back. Soria will be active for tonight's game, so get him back in the lineup tonight. He should be fine going forward, so keep him in unless he aggravates the injury again.
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| Royals CL Joakim Soria has traveled with the team on their nine game road trip and could be activated from the disabled list as early as this week in Tampa according to MLB.com. |
Our View: This would be great news for the swooning Royals and Soria fantasy owners, but don't celebrate just yet. It is likely Soria will be eased back in to the closer's role and may not be activated immediately.
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| The Kansas City Star reports that closer Joakim Soria will throw a 20-25 pitch bullpen session in extended spring training and the team will evaluate his sore rotator cuff afterwards to determine whether or not he will need a minor league rehab assignment. |
Our View: Soria could be activated and rejoin the team next week if all goes well. He remains one of the best closer's in the game, but should probably not be activated for next week's games just yet.
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| Joakim Soria, who is recovering from a strained right rotator cuff, threw 15 pitches during a simulated game Wednesday in Arizona, according to the Kansas City Star. |
Our View: He did not experience any discomfort during the session. He is slated for another simulated game Saturday, and will increase his pitch-count to around 25. Barring a setback, he could start a minor league rehab stint at some point next week.
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| Skipper Trey Hillman reiterated that Joakim Soria is at least 10 days away from returning to the Royals while recovering from a strained right rotator cuff, according to MLB.com. Hillman said, "I say 10 days to two weeks would be fair." |
Our View: Soria threw 25 pitches off the mound prior to Saturday's game, and he did not have any issues with his shoulder. He has not pitched since May 7.
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| Joakim Soria, on the DL with a strained right rotator cuff, threw off flat ground for the second-straight day on Wednesday, according to the Kansas City Star. |
Our View: Soria said he felt very good after the session, and he's three-to-five days from throwing off a mound. He'll partake in a minor league rehab assignment before returning to duty for the Royals, which is still probably two weeks away.
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| ESPN.com is reporting that Royals' closer Joakim Soria threw on flat ground Tuesday for the first time since going on the DL. |
Our View: Soria doesn't appear to be ready to come off the DL this weekend as projected, but he took a step in the right direction today. There is no timetable set for his return, but once he throws off of a mound he should be close.
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| According to the Kansas City Star, closer Joakim Soria expects to be ready to rejoin the team as soon as his DL stint is up next week. |
Our View: The Royals aren't quite as convinced as Soria. The closer is still not throwing yet and the team hasn't gauged when his normal exercise program can start up. When he's throwing consistently pain-free he'll be good to come back, but no one knows when that will be. Stay tuned.
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| Joakim Soria was placed on the 15-day DL with shoulder soreness on Sunday, according to the Kansas City Star. The move is retroactive to this past Friday and he will be eligible to return on May 23. Luke Hochevar was called up from Triple-A and he will take Sidney Ponson's place in the rotation. Meanwhile, Ponson will move to the bullpen. |
Our View: Juan Cruz figures to be the interim closer until Soria returns to action. Soria had pitched with the soreness over the past week, but the pain was not getting any better. He does expect to be ready to return on the 23rd, but the team will likely put him through an MRI before then. We'll keep you posted with any new updates.
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| According to MLB.com, Royals' closer Joakim Soria will not be available to pitch on Saturday should a save situation arise. |
Our View: Soria is considered day-to-day and has been dealing with a lingering shoulder problem. He has made just three appearances in the Royals last 16 games and for now any save opportunities would go to Kyle Farnsworth. However, with Zack Greinke on the mound a save opp may not be necessary.
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| Joakim Soria recorded his sixth save of the season on Sunday in the Royals 7-5 win over the Twins. He allowed a hit and an unearned run in the ninth. |
Our View: The surprise sensation from 2008 looks to be in top form again this season. He already has six saves and has fanned nine hitters in 7.2 innings against just two walks.
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| The Royals confirmed that closer Joakim Soria (shoulder) was available on Friday night, but he wasn't needed in the 7-5 loss to the Twins, the Kansas City Star reports. |
Our View: We're eager to see Soria get back out there, even if it isn't in a save situation. We'll be checking out his velocity and effectiveness whenever he gets back on the mound.
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| Joakim Soria could resume his role as the Royals' closer tonight at Minnesota, according to the Kansas City Star. He has been recovering from a sore right shoulder.
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Our View: Soria hopes to return tonight, and noted that everything is good regarding his shoulder. We will keep you posted on his status.
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| Joakim Soria did not experience any pain Wednesday after throwing a bullpen session Tuesday, according to the Kansas City Star. He has been recovering from a sore right shoulder. |
Our View: Soria noted that he feels fine, and will throw again today. Barring a setback, Soria could resume his closer's role this weekend.
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| According to the Kansas City Star, closer Joakim Soria threw off a mound for the first time on Tuesday since his shoulder started acting up. |
Our View: The medical staff is very encouraged by Soria's progress and everything went swimmingly during the mound session Tuesday. Barring any setbacks he could return to active duty for the weekend series against the Twins.
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| MLB.com is reporting that Joakim Soria threw 30 to 35 throws off flat ground in the bullpen on Sunday. Soria has been sidelined with tightness behind his throwing shoulder. |
Our View: This is a very good sign for Soria, as he wasn't scheduled to thrw for another few days. He said he felt good today and he wanted to test out the shoulder, so it appears as if he will be ready to go sooner than later.
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| MLB.com is reporting that Joakim Soria will be sidelined for three to five days with tightness behind his throwing shoulder. He is not expected to be placed on the DL. |
Our View: Turns out there is something wrong with Soria. He hasn't been pitching much this season, and now we know why, other than the fact that the Royals provide limited save opportunities. This injury doesn't seem to be all that serious, but any injury to a pitcher's shoulder is something to take note of. Watch closely for developments on this situation.
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| Joakim Soria tossed a perfect ninth inning while striking out three Yankees and earning his third save of the season on Sunday. |
Our View: The Mexicutioner had so many outings such as this last season that we lost count. He remains among the best closers in the game, and he has earned a save in all three Royals wins this season.
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| The Royals have no concerns with Joakim Soria representing Mexico in the upcoming World Baseball Classic, according to the Kansas City Star. |
Our View: GM Dayton Moore realizes there is an injury risk and a fatigue factor with players competing in the tournament, but believes it is easier for a reliever to get prepared for opening day. Soria nailed down 42 saves for the Royals last season, with a stellar 0.86 WHIP.
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| Now that the Royals added Coco Crisp to their outfield and Mike Jacobs to the infield, they will now focus on their bullpen, according to MLB.com. |
Our View: The club is in good shape with Joakim Soria as their closer, but they need to replace Ramon Ramirez (Boston) and Leo Nunez (Florida), who were traded to acquire the aforementioned players. Joe Beimel could be among their targets.
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| MLB.com reports that Joakim Soria will not be moved into the rotation next season. The Royals' best player appeared in 63 games in 2008 and recorded 42 saves while posting a 1.60 ERA. "One of the most important qualities of a successful closer is that he creates a perception in the opponents' dugout that the game is over," Moore said. "And I think Joakim is beginning to develop that kind of aura about him." |
Our View: Soria should remain a dominant fantasy closer for years to come. He was absolutely lights out for most of the season.
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| Joakim Soria continued his breakout rookie season on Saturday. The Royals beat the Twins 4-2 and Soria picked up his 42 save of the year. |
Our View: In a rough year for the Royals Soria established himself as one of the best up and coming closers in all of the major leagues.
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| Rookie fireballer Joakim Soria recorded his 40th save of the season on Wednesday night. This time he needed nine pitches to get his three consecutive outs. He has not given up a hit since September 4th. |
Our View: The Mexicutioner hasn't allowed a run since August 20th. He has made 10 appearances since then and recorded seven saves and a win. Clearly, he is one of the game's best up-and-coming pitchers.
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| Joakim Soria threw seven of eight pitches for strikes while recording his 39th save of the season on Tuesday night. |
Our View: The Mexicutioner continues to paralyze AL hitters and appears to be one of the game's best up-and-coming pitchers.
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| In a season with not a lot of positives, the Royals definitely found a closer. Joakim Soria recorded his 38th save Monday night to preserve the 3-0 win against the Mariners. |
Our View: It only took Soria 12 pitches to set the Mariners down in order in the ninth inning.
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| Joakim Soria pitched a perfect tenth inning and the Royals beat Francisco Liriano and the Twins 3-2 in 10 innings on Thursday afternoon. |
Our View: Joakim Soria earned his 36th save of the season with his perfect 10th inning. The right-hander struck out one of the three batters he faced.
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| Joakim Soria needed just eight pitches in a 1-2-3 ninth inning against the Indians on Saturday night, good for his 35th save of the season. The Royals won 3-1. |
Our View: The Mexicutioner continues to have one of the best seasons of any closer. He figures to be a significant fantasy factor in future seasons.
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| Joakim Soria pitched two strong innings Thursday night and collected his second victory of the season as the Royals scored in the bottom of the 11th, beating the visiting Athletics 5-4. |
Our View: Soria continues to be one of the only bright spots for the Royals. He is now sporting a 1.80 ERA on the season.
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| Joakim Soria notched his 30th save of the season with a perfect ninth inning on Wednesday. |
Our View: How many relievers have ever had a better start to their career than this guy? Through 118 career innings Soria has 47 saves a 2.07 ERA and a 0.84 WHIP. Why would the Royals still be considering moving him back into the rotation with numbers like that?
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| Joakim Soria earned his 28th save of the season on Monday. The Mexicutioner pitched a perfect ninth inning and now boasts an ERA of 1.53. |
Our View: Soria's been the best player on the Royals this season and should be depended upon to be a premier closer for years to come.
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| Joakim Soria suffered his second loss of the season on Sunday allowing the Mariners the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth inning. Soria heads into the All Star Game with a 1-2 record and 25 saves. |
Our View: The right-hander doesn't overpower hitters with his 90 mph fastball, but his command and stuff has allowed him to complete the first half of the season with a 1.50 ERA and 0.71 WHIP.
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| Another night, another save for Joakim Soria who picked up his 24th of the year on Thursday night. |
Our View: Soria continues to prove that you don't have to be on a great team to be a tremendously successful closer. Very few relievers have ever matched the start of Soria who owns a 2.13 ERA and 0.86 WHIP over the first 100 appearances of his career.
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| Joakim Soria was lights out again on Thursday night in Baltimore. The right-hander threw a perfect ninth inning recording two strikeouts in his 23rd save of the season. |
Our View: It's hard to pick out a player that has not only surprised, but also performed better in the process. George Sherrill comes to mind, but he recently blew saves in consecutive appearances. Soria's ERA is at 1.22, his WHIP at .073, and only his 23 saves trump his 41 strike outs in 37 innings.
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| Joakim Soria pitched a perfect ninth inning on Monday night striking out two and registering his 22nd save in 23 tries. |
Our View: Soria has been lights out in the first three months. His 1.25 ERA is complimented by his 0.75 WHIP, which is trumped by his 39 strikeouts in 36 innings.
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| Joakim Soria saved his third game in three days and the Kansas City Royals completed a three-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals with a 4-1 victory on Thursday afternoon. |
Our View: Soria threw three perfect innings in three days and bumped his save total from 15 to 18 on the season. In 32 innings of work this year the right-hander has allowed only 17 hits and five runs.
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| Joakim Soria returned from tightness in his rear end on Thursday to throw a scored ninth inning to pick up his 15th save of the year. |
Our View: Well it's good to know that the new donut cushion he sits on in the bullpen is doing the trick. Seriously, the man has filthy stuff and there have been few relievers who have been more effective this year than this youngster.
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| Joakim Soria was not available to pitch on Tuesday or Wednesday due to tightness in his back side, according to the Kansas City Star. |
Our View: Hopefully he can return to the diamond soon, as he has recorded 14 saves with a 0.93 WHIP over 28 innings, with 29 strikeouts.
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| Joakim Soria had a rough ninth inning against the Yankees on Saturday allowed three hits, a walk, and two runs to puck up his first loss and blown save of the year. |
Our View: Soria has been terrific this year throwing strikes and limiting his walks. Expect the youngster to rebound next time out as he is clearly one of the best young arms in the game.
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| The Royals likely won't attempt to move Joakim Soria to a starting role this year, but they make try it out next spring, MLB.com suggests. |
Our View: The Royals would be wise not to mess with his prized arm during this season. This news affects keeper leagues much more than regular scenarios. We could only speculate at what the Royals would do at the back of their bullpen without Soria, but the conversation might include Leo Nunez and Ramon Ramirez.
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| The Royals extended Joakim Soria to a three-year contract with an additional three options for 2012, '13 and '14.
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Our View: This is the fashion in which the Royals will be signing their youth, and according to sources will become more of the MLB norm in the future.
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| It had to eventually happen to Joakim Soria. The KC closer was finally scored on Friday night as Jeremy Hermida hit a 2-run home run in the ninth inning to pull the Fish within one run. Soria was able to strike out the next two hitters and secure his 11th save of the season. |
Our View: The two-run home run finally gave Soria something other than zero's next to his ERA. In 17.1 innings of work Soria has allowed five hits, two walks and struck out 20 and now has an 1.04 ERA and 0.40 WHIP.
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| Joakim Soria picked up his 10th save in as many chances with a perfect ninth inning as the Royals scored a 2-0 win over the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday night. |
Our View: Soria has not allowed a run in 16.1 innings and 17 appearances this season. He's allowed just four hits while striking out 18 and walking one.
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| Joakim Soria hansn't allowed a run in 11 innings this season and he has allowed only four baserunners in a fantastic start to his season, according to MLB.com. "It's hard for [hitters] to pick up the ball," pitching coach Bob McClure said. "You'll see a lot of guys take so many strikes with him and a lot of guys swinging through balls. It's just a gift." |
Our View: Whatever he's doing, he needs to keep it up. Over 80 innings in his career Soria has a 2.14 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and has allowed batters to hit .174. Dominance like that is money in the bank even if the guy pitches for the Royals.
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| Joakim Soria has five saves on the year without allowing a run to spearhead what has been one of the best bullpens in baseball in the early going, this according to MLB.com. |
Our View: The Royals bullpen currently sports a 2.31 ERA which is first in baseball and almost a run ahead of the second best team in the AL, the White Sox (3.10).
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| Joakim Soria struck out the Twins side in order in the ninth for his third save on Sunday. After four innings of work this year, the Royals hard-throwing right-hander has seven strikeouts, given up only two hits, a WHIP of less than .50 and allowed zero runs. |
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| Joakim Soria generated three strikeouts in one inning of work against Detroit on Wednesday, as the Royals won 4-0. It would have been a save opportunity if Detroit could have just scored one run, or Kansas City scored one less. |
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| Joakim Soria has had a bit of a rough spring, but on Thursday he pitched two scoreless innings as he works to neutralize the adjustments made by batters to his stuff and approach, according to a report on MLB.com. Soria will open the year as the Royals closer, and with no one around representing a serious threat to the position, he hopes to build on last year's success that included 17 saves and a 9.78 K/9 mark. |
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| The Royals had at least toyed with the idea of moving Joakim Soria to the starting rotation, but it now appears the club is ready to move forward with the right-hander as their closer, according to the Kansas City Star. "From a strategic standpoint," GM Dayton Moore said, "we're confident he can be successful in either role. Obviously, he was successful at the back end of our bullpen. If we started the season today, he'd be our closer." |
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| Joakim Soria will return to the closers role after the trade of Octavio Dotel on Tuesday. "We thought about Zack [Grienke] as the closer," manager Buddy Bell told the Kansas City Star. "But we just felt that Soria was the better choice because he had some success early on. We thought that experience was important." Soria sports a nifty 2.44 ERA and 1.04 WHIP and saved 10 games in 13 chances earlier this season. |
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| Joakim Soria threw 1.1 innings of scoreless relief on Wednesday to stretch his streak to 19.1 innings. According to the Kansas City Star, Soria is within three innings of the club record of 22.1, set by reliever Rusty Meachem in 1994. The overall team record is 33 innings by starter Kevin Appier in 1993. There is a very good chance that closer Octavio Dotel gets traded before July 31, which would make Soria a potential source of saves for the stretch run. |
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| The Royals activated Joakim Soria from the disabled list on Thursday. He had been on the DL since May 26 with shoulder inflammation, according to the AP. With Octavio Dotel now healthy, Soria, who has 10 saves on the year, will work in a setup role. |
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| Joakim Soria threw a bullpen session on Tuesday, as expected, according to the AP. "I felt fine," he said. Soria is expected to be activated from the disabled list on Thursday, though he should be working in a setup role now. |
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| Joakim Soria will test his injured right shoulder by throwing 30-35 pitches during a bullpen session on Tuesday and remains on track to return to action on Thursday. “That will tell us what we need to do,” manager Buddy Bell told the Kansas City Star of Soria’s scheduled throwing session. “If everything goes the way it did last time he threw, we’ll activate him on Thursday.” |
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| Joakim Soria will take another step forward in his rehab from an inflamed right shoulder Sunday. That's when he's scheduled to throw off a mound for the first time, according to the KC Star. "He says he feels no pain at all," pitching coach Bob McClure said, "and he’s been throwing hard (in flat-ground drills)." If this session goes well, he'll throw again Tuesday and could come off the disabled list when eligible on Thursday. |
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| Joakim Soria made it through a successful bullpen session on Wednesday, throwing 30 pitches and feeling no pain in his injured shoulder afterwards. “I feel good. No pain – nothing,” he told the Royals official website. He is expected to throw again on Friday. |
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| Manager Buddy Bell told the Royals official website that reliever Joakim Soria has "good range of motion" and decreased pain in his inflamed right shoulder two days after being sent to the disabled list because of the injury. |
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| Joakim Soria went on the 15-day disabled list Saturday with an inflammed right shoulder. Ryan Braun was recalled to take his roster spot.
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| With Octavio Dotel still dealing with injury issues, Joakim Soria will handle the closing duties for the Royals for the immediate future, according to the Kansas City Star. Manager Buddy Bell did say that David Riske and Joel Peralta will supplement Soria in a committee approach. "But with the way that Soria has thrown," Bell acknowledged, "we'll probably keep him closer to the end than the other two." Soria has thrown six scoreless innings this year, striking out six and allowing only three baserunners. |
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| Joakim Soria took down six straight batters over the final two innings of last night's game against the Blue Jays to earn his first save of the season, according to the KC Star. Manager Buddy Bell said he left Soria in for the final inning "because I just wanted to see him out there in the ninth inning." |
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| Although Joakim Soria had a strong training camp (3.12 ERA, 18 strikeouts in 17 1/3 innings), Buddy Bell is going to use David Riske as the Royals temporary closer while Octavio Dotel rehabs his oblique injury. "(Riske) has the most experience among the other guys," Bell told the Kansas City Star. |
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