48 Joakim Soria RP

Arizona manager Torey Lovullo has refused to name Soria or any other reliever as the team's closer, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

Soria has the most closing experience in the bullpen, so he's probably being considered for the job. Stefan Crichton is also a name being bandied about for the ninth-inning role, per Steve Gilbert of the Diamondbacks' official site. The manager was also mum about the identity of his Opening Day starter or if Ketel Marte would be the primary center fielder.

Soria signed a one-year, $3.5 million contract with the Diamondbacks on Wednesday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Soria performed well during the abbreviated 2020 season with Oakland, converting on two of his three save chances while posting a 2.82 ERA and 24:10 K:BB over 22.1 innings. The right-hander likely enters the 2021 season as the favorite for closing duties in Arizona if he can remain effective during his age-37 season.

Soria (2-2) was charged with the loss in a defeat at the hands of the Mariners in the first game of a doubleheader Monday, allowing two earned runs on two hits and three walks over two-thirds of an inning. He struck out one.

Tasked with preserving a narrow 5-4 lead and potentially serving as a bridge to closer Liam Hendriks in the seven-inning contest, Soria promptly allowed a one-out single to Phillip Ervin and a two-out RBI double to Tim Lopes shortly after entering in the sixth. Three straight walks, the last to Kyle Lewis with the bases loaded, completed the Mariners' comeback and saddled Soria with the loss. The veteran reliever has now sandwiched a pair of two-run appearances around two scoreless outings thus far in September, and he's allowed at least one earned run in three of his last five trips to the mound overall.

Soria fired a clean eighth inning in a win over the Astros on Wednesday after surrendering three earned runs across two innings in his prior two outings.

The veteran reliever's pair of stumbles came against the Astros and Padres on Aug. 29 and Saturday, respectively, and saw Soria allow six hits, including his first home run of the season. However, manager Bob Melvin's trust in the 36-year-old apparently remains unfazed, as he called upon Soria for a key high-leverage setup spot in Wednesday's one-run game. The right-hander has enjoyed a solid season overall despite his recent struggles, as he sports a 2-1 record, 2.55 ERA, three holds and impressive 26.7 percent strikeout rate across 17 appearances.

Soria (2-1) was tagged with the loss Monday against Arizona. He allowed one run on one hit with no strikeouts or walks in his one inning of work.

Soria entered the game in the bottom of the ninth with a 3-3 tie and a runner on second base, but he loaded the bases soon after striking out Kole Calhoun only to see David Peralta hit the game-winning single. This was the first earned run against Soria all season, however, so he should remain a trusted guy in high-leverage situations moving forward.

Soria (2-0) earned the win in relief Friday against the Giants after pitching a scoreless inning, allowing one hit and one walk.

Soria pitched the bottom of the ninth after Oakland rallied from a five-run deficit, and he got the job done despite allowing two baserunners -- he needed 21 pitches to complete the inning, although 13 of those were strikes, so he didn't have problems locating the zone. Soria has not allowed an earned run this season and is riding a streak of eight scoreless appearances, a span in which he has two wins, two holds, a 1.15 WHIP and an impressive 14.5 K/9.

Soria was perfect over 1.2 innings, striking out three batters and earning the save in Wednesday's 6-4 win over the Rangers.

Closer Liam Hendriks had pitched in three of the last four games, so Soria was called on for the save chance. The 36-year-old righty performed admirably, shutting down the Rangers to convert his second save of the year. Soria has yet to allow an earned run in 6.2 innings this season. He's struck out 11 batters and allowed just four hits and two walks in six appearances.

Soria gave up two hits while striking out two across a scoreless ninth inning Monday to pick up the save against the Angels.

Liam Hendriks logged a four-out save in Sunday's game, so he was unavailable for Monday's matinee. While Hendriks should get all the save chances when he is available, Soria appears to be the clear next man up.

Soria was credited with his first hold in Sunday's win over the Angels, allowing a hit and recording a strikeout in a scoreless seventh inning.

The long-tenured reliever was particularly sharp, firing 13 of his 16 pitches for strikes. Soria has been busy early this season after logging a career-high 71 appearances in 2019, as he also managed a scoreless frame in Friday's season opener. Soria tied a career high with 21 holds last season, and given his experience in a variety of bullpen roles, he shapes up for another solid workload in the abbreviated 2020 campaign.

Soria posted a 6.00 ERA and two holds across three innings over three Cactus League appearances before spring training was paused.

The veteran reliever equaled a career high with 21 holds last season and posted his lowest WHIP (1.03) since the 2015 campaign, leaving him poised to play an important seventh- and eighth-inning role again this season. Soria also established a high-water mark in strikeouts with 79 in 2019, and although a few poor outings and 1.2 HR/9 helped push his ERA to 4.30, the 35-year-old showed he still had plenty left in the tank.

Soria (2-4) was credited with his second victory in a win over the Angels on Wednesday, firing a perfect eighth inning in which he did not record a strikeout.

Soria got through his one frame on 11 pitches, keeping the Athletics' deficit at 2-1. He was ultimately rewarded for his strong work when Matt Chapman slugged a homer in the top of the ninth to give Oakland a lead it wouldn't relinquish. The unblemished performance extended Soria's month-long scoreless streak to seven appearances and lowered an ERA that sat at 4.94 on Aug. 22 down to 4.37.

Soria recorded his 20th hold in a win over the Royals on Tuesday by firing a perfect eighth inning during which he recorded two strikeouts, his second straight scoreless effort since returning from time off due to an elbow issue.

Soria needed a scant nine pitches to mow through the trio of Nick Dini, Whit Merrifield and Adalberto Mondesi, giving him a pair of perfect innings in each of the first two games of the series versus the Royals. The impressive efforts are especially encouraging in light of the fact Soria was held out of action for 10 days prior to Monday due to his elbow problems.

Soria hasn't made a relief appearance since Sept. 6 due to an elbow issue but was cleared to play catch prior to Sunday's game against the Rangers, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

If not for the expanded September roster, Soria likely would have landed on the injured list at the time the elbow issue first cropped up. The fact that Soria was seen throwing again suggests he's mostly moved past the issue, though he's uncertain to be available out of the bullpen in the series finale in Texas.

Soria earned the save against the Yankees on Thursday, pitching one inning and giving up one run on one hit while striking out two.

With usual closer Liam Hendriks getting a breather after registering a five-out save Wednesday, Soria was called upon in the ninth inning to protect a one-run lead. He gave up a solo home run to Gleyber Torres but nothing more to notch his first save of the season. Soria now has 221 saves to his name over the course of his career but does not figure to get many more opportunities this season with Hendriks firmly entrenched in the closer role.

Soria earned his 12th hold in a win over the Rangers on Saturday with a perfect eighth inning during which he recorded a strikeout. He has a 2.45 ERA, .214 BAA and 1.09 WHIP across the 7.1 innings covering his eight second-half appearances.

Soria also has three holds during that span, as he's been much steadier than in the pre-All-Star-break portion of July, when he allowed an earned run in three of his last four appearances before the extended layoff. Soria has lowered his ERA from 5.68 to 4.41 since June 10, so he's largely been a reliable component of the bullpen after a rocky first two-plus months of the season.

Soria, who recorded a strikeout and allowed an earned run on two hits and a walk over two-thirds of an inning versus the White Sox on Friday, has now surrendered an earned run in three of his last four relief appearances.

The veteran reliever entered July riding a seven-appearance scoreless streak, and he managed to extend it at the expense of the Twins during his first outing of the month. However, it's been a rocky journey for Soria since, with only one clean appearance in the last four. The 35-year-old sports an elevated 4.89 ERA overall for the season -- a figure well above his career 3.01 figure -- and has blown all three save chances he's seen, but he at least has managed to contribute nine holds.

Soria will serve as the opener for Wednesday's game against the Angels.

Soria will likely pitch one or two innings before giving way to Daniel Mengden, who is expected to cover the bulk of innings Wednesday. In 27 appearances this season (all in relief), Soria owns a 5.02 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 27:10 K:BB in 28.2 innings.

Soria (1-4) allowed two runs on two hits and a walk in one inning, sticking him with the loss in Tuesday's 6-4 defeat at the hands of the Angels.

Soria allowed a single to Tommy La Stella and walked Mike Trout with two outs before Shohei Ohtani lined a two-run single to put the Angels ahead for good. The 35-year-old reliever has a 4.73 ERA and 1.13 WHIP in 25 appearances spanning 26.2 innings this year.

Soria (1-2) struck out three over two perfect innings to earn the win in extra innings against the Indians on Friday.

The veteran reliever came through with a pair of scoreless frames after closer Blake Treinen had already done the same immediately before him. The strong showing was an extension of Soria's recent body of work that's now seen him generate five straight scoreless efforts and nine over his last 10 appearances overall. Soria's current 4.66 ERA is largely the byproduct of a pair of four-run blowups, but the former closer has otherwise been effective as one of several setup options for manager Bob Melvin.

Soria (0-1) failed to record an out in a loss to the Angels on Friday, allowing four earned runs on three hits and a walk.

The former closer was called on to start the eighth with the Athletics cruising following a masterful six innings from starter Marco Estrada and a perfect seventh from Lou Trivino. Soria proceeded to yield singles to Jonathan Lucroy and Brian Goodwin before surrendering a double to Kole Calhoun that plated both. Despite a rocky start to the season that's now seen him give up five earned runs across three outings, Soria is expected to be relied on as one of several setup options ahead of closer Blake Treinen this year.