Remember how automatic Joakim Soria was as the Texas Rangers' closer in the first half of 2014? It's hard to remember now, especially with how effective Neftali Feliz was after the Rangers traded away Soria for some coveted minor-league arms from the Detroit Tigers.
In case you forgot, Soria was 1-3 with a 2.70 ERA and 17 saves with 42 strikeouts in 33 1/3 innings of work as the Rangers' closer. He was quietly one of the best players the Rangers had over the first half of the season.
Then, shortly after his great first half, he was dealt away to the Tigers, where he immediately sunk into awful territory and posted a 4.91 ERA with one save and a 1-1 record in 11 innings of work spanning 13 appearances. He had an injury mixed in there and was a huge disappointment.
So what are the Tigers doing now? Well, they announced they will indeed pick up Soria's 2015 club option, which will cost them $7 million as opposed to the alternative -- a $500,000 buyout.
Don't ask, but if the Tigers want to pay that kind of dough for what they got out of Soria, then they should feel free.
