<table> </table> ANAHEIM, Calif. | Joakim Soria&#8217;s continuing shoulder soreness prompted the Royals to say enough Sunday afternoon and place him on the 15-day disabled list.</p><p>The club then replaced Soria on the roster by recalling right-hander Luke Hochevar from Class AAA Omaha. Hochevar will start Tuesday night at Oakland, while veteran Sidney Ponson shifts from the rotation to the bullpen.</p><p>Manager Trey Hillman announced the moves before the Royals headed to the Bay Area after Sunday&#8217;s 4-3 loss to the Los Angeles Angels.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;ve been going day to day (with Soria) as you well know,&#8221; Hillman said. &#8220;It&#8217;s a little bit of a strain in the rotator cuff that he&#8217;s going through.&#8221;</p><p>The decision came after Soria reported renewed soreness following his shaky one-inning performance Thursday in closing out a 3-1 victory over Seattle at Kauffman Stadium.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s not going away,&#8221; he said, &#8220;so I have to take some time (off) so I&#8217;ll be ready for the rest of the season. It&#8217;s still too early in the season to be pitching like that. I think the better thing is to go on the DL, work hard on my shoulder and see what happens after 15 days.&#8221;</p><p>The move is retroactive to Friday and means the club will be without its All-Star closer until at least May 23. Hillman said he will use a committee approach to close games in Soria&#8217;s absence.</p><p>The Royals initially believed rest and a close monitoring of Soria&#8217;s condition would alleviate the problem, which first surfaced in spring training. Club officials continue to say all exams show no structural damage.</p><p>&#8220;I tried to make sure I didn&#8217;t do anything to increase the inflammation that he had,&#8221; Hillman said. &#8220;It&#8217;s one of those things where, at some point in time, you&#8217;ve got to decide whether (to take sufficient time) to get it calmed down.&#8221;</p><p>Soria is 1-0 with a 2.08 ERA and seven saves this season in eight appearances.</p><p>The Royals turned Soria into their full-time closer after the July 31, 2007, trade that sent Octavio Dotel to Atlanta for Kyle Davies. Soria is 4-3 with a 1.88 ERA in 93 games since then, with 56 saves in 60 opportunities.</p><p>&#8220;I think I&#8217;ll be back in 15 days,&#8221; Soria said. &#8220;It just needs rest. We&#8217;ll take care of that and see what happens.&#8221;</p><p>Hochevar&#8217;s string of strong performances at Omaha apparently made him an irresistible choice when the Royals looked to replace Soria on the roster.</p><p>&#8220;He&#8217;s coming off one of his best outings this year,&#8221; Hillman said, &#8220;so, hopefully, that will help our team win ballgames. We just felt this would (make) our club the strongest in &#8230; both in the rotation and in the bullpen.&#8221;</p><p>Hochevar is 5-0 with a 0.90 ERA in six starts at Omaha. He got a no-decision in his last start after pitching eight shutout innings when the bullpen let a 2-0 lead slip away in a 3-2 loss to Memphis.</p><p>The move bumps Ponson to the bullpen despite his strong outing last Wednesday in limiting Seattle to one run in 7 1/3 innings. Ponson is 1-4 overall with a 5.91 ERA in six starts.</p><p>&#8220;Sid will give us another ground-ball guy in the bullpen,&#8221; Hillman said. &#8220;We&#8217;ll use him as needed. He&#8217;s resilient.&#8221;</p><p>Ironically, Hochevar appeared likely to win a spot in the rotation until the Royals signed Ponson midway through spring training. Ponson has made just four relief appearances over his last 11 seasons.