Weekend Rumblings - News for September 10, 2016

Weekend Rumblings - News for September 10, 2016

Ned Yost blames Joakim Soria’s struggles on overwork.

Soria, though, does improve when he’s pitching on two and three days of rest. In 18 1/3innings, he has posted a 0.98 ERA with 25 strikeouts.

“You go back and look at his numbers, specifically two days off in between, they’re fantastic,” Yost said.

“Where he’s run into trouble in the last three weeks has been times where I’ve used him back-to-back.”

Darin Watson at Baseball Prospectus Kansas City doesn’t think Soria deserves all the blame he has received.

I thought Soria would be a useful bullpen piece, although I expected him to pitch more in the sixth or seventh innings. I wouldn’t say he’s had a bad year, more of an average to slightly below average year. But he’s certainly struggled in key spots. The point of this exercise is not to excuse Soria’s performance this year. No, the point is that over 162 games, there are going to be plenty of games that a team feels like they should have won. There are plenty of plays that make a difference between winning and losing. The Royals went 7-19 in July, struggled pretty much all year to find a reliable fifth starter, and battled injuries to key players. They showed plenty of heart just by playing well enough in August to get back in the playoff race, but if they do fall short, it’s ridiculous to blame just one player for it.

Yost gives catcher Salvador Perez Friday off to recover from his wrist injury.

“He went out and swung, and it’s still swollen,” Yost said. “We’ll shoot again for tomorrow.”

Lorenzo Cain is hurting.

Sam Mellinger writes that signing raw athletes like Tim Tebow is something the Royals are trying to do.

“The first thing you look for with a multisport kid is speed,” said Gary Hughes, a longtime scout involved in the drafting of crossover prospects John Elway, Delino DeShields and John Lynch, among others. “That’s usually what you work off. If the kid can really run, you have something to work with. Your club there in Kansas City has done that.”

The last component of this may be the most important. The Urban Youth Academy is scheduled to open next year in the 18th & Vine District, and will give the Royals an advantage in attracting and developing raw athletic talent into baseball skill.

Already, both informally and officially, the Royals are spreading the gospel of baseball to grade schools, churches, high schools, and non-profits — particularly in and around the urban core — about the benefits and opportunities of baseball.

Bo Jackson stars in a Tecmo Bowl-themed car commercial.

Catching up with former Royals pitcher Bob Tufts (h/t cmkeller)

Stephen Strasburg has a strained flexor mass, putting his season in jeopardy.

But don’t worry, the Nationals have insurance.

Alex Anthopoulous is no longer a candidate for the Twins GM job.

Do more home runs mean more wins?

Former Braves third baseman Hector Olivera is guilty of assault and will spend ten days in jail.

White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf goes into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Josh Beckett admits the Red Sox had him fake an injury once.

A Florida betting tout pleads guilty to a $45 million scam.

Sporting Kansas City gives up a lead in stoppage time to Houston, probably due to Joakim Soria.

Amazon will expand its retail presence with 100 pop-up stores.

How did the nickname “Dick” become short for the name “Richard”?

How CBS and Paramount screwed up Star Trek’s 50th anniversary.

Your song of the day is Low Fidelity Jet Set Orchestra with “The Amplifier.”