Jorge Soler’s Cubs reunion began with a baseball planted firmly in his shoulder.
Standing at the plate with two outs in the second inning Wednesday, Soler absorbed an errant 93 mph fastball from the right arm of Cubs pitcher Eddie Butler. Soler emerged from the moment unscathed and jogged to first base. But he would leave Surprise Stadium still searching for his first hit of the spring following the Royals’ 7-3 loss to the Cubs in front of an announced crowd of 7,593.
Soler, the Royals’ marquee addition of the offseason, has opened the spring 0 for 8 while drawing two walks in four games.