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Kansas City Royals: Give Jorge Soler Some Time to Adjust

By Leigh Oleszczak

Mar 5, 2017; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; Kansas City Royals right fielder Jorge Soler (12) bats in the first inning against the San Francisco Giants during a spring training game at Scottsdale Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 5, 2017; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; Kansas City Royals right fielder Jorge Soler (12) bats in the first inning against the San Francisco Giants during a spring training game at Scottsdale Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Kansas City Royals traded for Jorge Soler earlier this offseason and so far, he hasn’t been anything special. The regular season hasn’t even started yet though, so let’s give the former Cub some time to adjust.

Fans were devastated this offseason when the KC Royals shipped closer Wade Davis off to Chicago in exchange for outfielder Jorge Soler. The Royals were losing WadeBot, but gaining a 24-year old with a lot of upside.

So far that upside has been hard to find with Soler, but the Royals have only had him through Spring Training. It’s not quite time to panic yet.

Worse case scenario for this season is that Soler’s recent oblique injury keeps him on the disabled list for awhile and he can’t contribute to the team. Perhaps this causes him to spend most of 2017 in the minor leagues while the Royals rely on guys like Paulo Orlando and maybe even Peter O’Brien to fill the void in right field.

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As of now, the word is that Soler could miss the beginning of the 2017 season. Soler has struggled with injuries throughout his young career, which is concerning, but the team has him for four total years. There’s still plenty of time for the Royals to “win” this trade.

Trading Wade Davis was painful, but the closer had spent two stints on the disabled list last season and didn’t look as effective as he had in the past. The Cubs only have him for one year too, meaning he’ll make an immediate impact for them this year.

Soler probably won’t make an immediate impact for the Kansas City Royals, and it might be tough for Royals fans to embrace that.

While I’m all for giving Jorge Soler time to adjust to being a member of the Royals, I will say that him already suffering an injury is worrisome. One of my friends is a diehard Cubs fan, and before the Royals had officially picked up Soler, he told me that “[Royals fans] would be lucky if they get more than two good years from Georgie” (I guess Georgie was his nickname in Chicago?).

That part worries me. Hopefully Soler can bounce back from this injury and make an impact for the Royals organization. Dayton Moore and the Royals traded for him because the kid has power. He hit 12 home runs last season in 86 games.

With Brandon Moss on the roster right now, the Royals have their “power guy” and there’s no need to rush Jorge Soler into a starting role if he’s not ready for that yet.

That would spell nothing but doom for this team, and this is a trade that needs to work out in Kansas City’s favor.

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