Royals deal relievers Soria, Alexander in three-way trade

As the Kansas City Royals begin a youth movement this offseason, they’ve traded away two key members of their 2017 bullpen as part of a three-way trade Thursday.

Leaving the Royals are right-hander Joakim Soria and left-hander Scott Alexander, along with cash considerations. Heading to Kansas City are right-hander Trevor Oaks and infielder Erick Mejia.

The Royals got Oaks and Mejia from the Los Angeles Dodgers, who then dealt Soria, left-hander Luis Avilán and cash considerations to the Chicago White Sox for infielder Jake Peter.

Alexander had a breakout season in 2017, posting a 2.48 ERA with 59 strikeouts and 28 walks over a career-high 69 innings. The third-year veteran received several opportunities as the Royals’ closer down the stretch and recorded four saves.

Soria, meanwhile, posted a 3.70 ERA with 64 strikeouts and 20 walks over 56 innings in 2017. The 33-year-old right-hander, who was in his second stint with Kansas City, recorded 162 saves over seven seasons in a Royals uniform.

Oaks, 24, was added to the Royals’ 40-man roster. He spent most of last season at Triple-A Oklahoma City, where he went 4-3 with a 3.64 ERA in 16 games (15 starts). He had 72 strikeouts and only 18 walks. A seventh-round draft pick by the Dodgers in 2014, Oaks was the No. 14-ranked prospect in the LA organization in 2017 by MLB.com.

Mejia, 23, played most of 2017 at Double-A Tulsa. The switch-hitter batted .289 with 17 doubles, three triples, seven homers and 25 steals (third best in the Texas League) in 29 attempts in 102 games with the Drillers.