Did Joakim Soria blame Royals’ defense after Tuesday’s loss?

Perhaps it was frustration. And, really, you couldn’t blame Royals relief pitcher Joakim Soria for being upset Tuesday’s 5-4 loss to the A’s.

But this comment Soria, who has seven blown saves this season, made after the game had a number of fans fuming on Wednesday morning:

Here is the full quote from Rustin Dodd’s story on Tuesday night:

“The whole season has been weird. It’s been different. Broken-bat hits. Today, it was probably supposed to be ‘no-doubles defense’ and he gets a double right to the middle of the field. Overall, it’s a weird season.”

Was Soria blaming center fielder Jarrod Dyson for not making the catch on a ball that was hit over his head? Was Soria blaming the defensive alignment? Or was it simply a matter of Soria not expressing himself properly?

Here are the facts on that particular at-bat. The Royals led 3-2 in the eighth inning. There were two outs and Oakland had runners on first and second when Soria entered the game to face Jake Smolinski. But the A’s used Yonder Alonso as a pinch-hitter and he crushed a ball to straightaway center field.

The exit velocity on that ball was 105.3 mph. Only six balls were hit harder all game, and according to the excellent Baseball Savant site, the expected batting average on the ball was .626.

Whatever the case, Soria’s comments rubbed people the wrong way. Here is a sampling of what fans said:

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This story was originally published September 14, 2016 at 9:58 AM with the headline "Did Joakim Soria blame Royals’ defense after Tuesday’s loss?."