Done Deals: The Royals sign pitchers Chris Young, Joakim Soria

This is The Stew’s running list of trades and signings that happen during baseball’s Winter Meetings. We’ll update this post as news happens. For up-to-the-second chatter and rumors, be sure to check out our Winter Meeting tracker.

MONDAY
The Royals sign pitchers Chris Young, Joakim Soria
On the first morning of the MLB winter meetings, the World Series-winning Kansas City Royals added two pitchers to keep their championship staff going strong.

That’s lanky starter Chris Young, who was with the Royals last season, and free agent reliever Joakim Soria, who they’re reportedly paying $25 million over three years. That Soria news was first reported by Jerry Crasnick of ESPN early Monday morning. The Young news was said to be “just a matter of time” for a few days now.

Here’s the latest from the Royals, via Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com.

Hearing both the Young and Soria deals are now just pending physicals. Also hearing Young is in KC. #Royals

— Jeffrey Flanagan (@FlannyMLB) December 7, 2015

BLS take: The Kansas City Royals know how to win and they’ll have the World Series rings to prove it in a few months. One of their keys is pitching, particularly their bullpen, so getting Soria is a move that makes a ton of sense for K.C. They lost Ryan Madson in free agency and Greg Holland is gone too, so they want another arm to go with Wade Davis and Kelvin Herrera. As for Young, the Royals know what they’re getting with him. He’s versatile (can pitch in long relief or start), smart and experienced. The 36-year-old was 11-6 with a 3.06 ERA last season, so getting him for two years and close to $12 million (as reported) seems like a bargain.

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Tigers add reliever Mark Lowe on two-year deal
The Detroit Tigers, still trying to bulk up that bullpen, have landed Mark Lowe on a two-year deal. ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick first said they were close and CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman said it was a done deal.

Mark Lowe has deal with tigers. 2 years. @jcrasnick on it

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) December 7, 2015

BLS take: Lowe is 32, but found new life on his fastball last season, making him alluring for the Tigers. He had a 1.96 ERA in 57 appearances for the Mariners and Blue Jays, striking out more than a batter per inning. We don’t know yet what the Tigers paid, so it’s hard to judge the value. Lowe figures to be a setup man for new Tigers closer Francisco Rodriguez.

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