By CHRIS RASMUSSEN
That long losing streak summarized the Royals' past and present.
It began with the Royals serving as Washington Generals to a terrific human-interest story. It continued for two weeks. During one game, the Royals dropped a five-run lead in the ninth inning, with one player leaving that game due to "massive hives" and inspiring another to issue a profanity-laced tirade describing his teammates as "babies."
They sent Billy Butler to the minor leagues, weeks after giving fans a free jersey adorning his name. So this weekend, scores of fans at the 'K wore a replica jersey featuring a player demoted to the minor leagues. On September 6, Royals fans could wear those jerseys while collecting a Tony Peña, Jr. bobblehead, possibly celebrating two players not on the active roster at the time.
The Royals top minor-league affiliate canceled a game due to a hydrochloric acid leak near the stadium.
There was only one thing missing.
Locusts.
Saturday, the suffering ended. Joakim Soria, the Royals 24-year-old closer, entered the game in the eighth with the Royals clinging to a lead. He recorded six outs -- actually, seven, if you include Joey Gathright losing a ball in the lights, which allowed a run to score. Soria saved the game and perhaps the season for the Royals, making him perfect in his 12 save opportunities this year.
Soria represents optimism for the future and hopefully an end to the Royals sad past and present. He is the first tangible manifestation of Dayton Moore's scouting skills on the Royals' roster, as Moore acquired Soria for $50,000, the baseball equivalent of a beggar finding a $1,000 bill. And Soria isn't going anywhere. Since the strike, KC lost David Cone, Brian McRae, Paul Byrd, Johnny Damon, Jermaine Dye, Carlos Beltran and others to financial considerations. Too often, Royals fans realize that their hope in a players' future has a time limit. Not Soria: as the Royals signed him until 2014 if the Royals like the arrangement.
While Soria is not closing out enough Royals victories, he might close a chapter in Royals history.
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Joakim Soria is a legitimate All-Star candidate, which is an obvious fact but one I shall repeat because it can't usually be said about KC players at all. Every time he drops in that nasty curveball, I can't even breathe because the awesomeness in the air is too thick.
(PS I wrote the Ladies... article about the losing streak. Thank God we don't have to worry about them actually using any of those ideas, or any better/more creative ones.)
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