Kansas City Royals: Injuries are Shaking Up the Roster

The Kansas City Royals have not exactly been healthy this season. While most of the injuries have been minor, there have still been absences that have impacted the lineup.

Perhaps the biggest loss for the Kansas City Royals has been All-Star Catcher Salvador Perez. The four-time Gold Glover and World Series MVP has been on the disabled list since August 6th. Salvy strained his intercostal muscle resulting in the DL trip.

The good news for the Kansas City Royals is that Sal has been playing catch and working out. In his most recent advancement he got in the cage to take BP. All signs are pointing to Perez returning to the line up soon.

According to Pete Grathoff of KansasCity.com Sal could return to the team as early as Tuesday. This would be huge for a Kansas City Royals squad that has had a tough go without Perez. In the article Grathoff quotes manager Ned Yost as saying:

“He’s going to take BP (batting practice), a couple rounds on the field today. If he passes all that, he’ll take a full round of BP on the field on Saturday and we’ll ramp up the BP on Sunday with a machine and get some more game-type speed stuff on Sunday and Monday, and we’ll see where he is on Tuesday.”

Joakim Soria is headed to the DL.

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The relief pitcher has not been without his share of struggles recently. Apparently there are health reasons for Jack’s performance of late.

Soria has been placed on the 10-Day DL by the Kansas City Royals. The reported reasoning is officially a left oblique strain.

Soria has been the target of much fan criticism since returning to Kansas City last season.

While 2016 was indeed a rough year for reliever, 2017 had seen him rebound to an extent.

Soria has posted a 3.96 ERA in 50.0 IP so far this season for the Kansas City Royals. He has a 4-3 record and 59 Ks. While it may not be the stellar numbers Jack put up in his prime, it is still better than most fans give him credit for.

According to this article, also by Grathoff, Soria had been pitching through soreness as of late. 

Replacing Soria on the roster will be RHP Kevin McCarthy.

McCarthy has pitched to a 1.75 ERA in 25.2 IP for the Kansas City Royals this season. The rookie has notched 12 Ks in 20 games so far.

While McCarthy will take Soria’s spot on the roster, it appears that Brandon Maurer will be taking over eighth inning duties. As the team looks to solidify the back-end of the bullpen, Yost will hope Maurer can be the bridge to closer Kelvin Herrera.

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For a Kansas City Royals team that is struggling to keep its playoff hopes alive, being able to cope with injuries is a major key. The team is currently 61-60 after being thumped by Cleveland on Friday night. The Tribe hold a six game lead in the American League Central.