SURPRISE, Ariz. — Right-hander Wade Davis, part of the Royals’ revamped rotation, will skip a scheduled start Saturday because of shoulder soreness.

“It’s slight right now,” manager Ned Yost said, “and we want to keep it that way. He’s throwing on the side now and feels pretty good.

“We’re at a point where we don’t need to push it, so we’ll continue to have him throw on the side, skip him one start and then get him right back in the rotation.”

The Royals acquired Davis, 27, in a Dec. 9, 2012 trade from Tampa Bay with pitcher James Shields and utilityman Elliot Johnson for four minor-league players, including outfielder Wil Myers.

Davis projects as the No. 4 starter in the club’s rotation. He worked five scoreless innings in two previous spring starts while allowing three hits with no walks and three strikeouts.

“It started out with some tightness and inflammation in the back of his shoulder,” Yost said. “It progressively got better, and we threw him on the side two days ago to gauge if he could make a start.

“He still felt it just a little bit, and it didn’t make any sense to force him out.”