"The news regarding Mike Moustakas' pending arrival pulled the spotlight away from the drama surrounding Joakim Soria's first save opportunity since reclaiming his job as the Royals' closer.

That's understandable, perhaps, but Soria put everyone on edge Thursday before securing a 3-2 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays by escaping from a bases-loaded jam in the ninth inning at Kauffman Stadium.

"It's never easy," he said. "The last couple of outings (in non-save situations), I was pitching well. This was a tough one, but we got the win. That's all that matters."

Soria's first save since May 20 also enabled Luke Hochevar, who worked seven strong innings, to gain his first victory in seven starts dating to May 1.

None of it was easy.

"That's how we wanted it," laughed right fielder Jeff Francoeur, whose two-run single capped a three-run third inning that gave the Royals a 3-0 lead. "We wanted to send these fans out with a nice, tense game before we leave town."

If so, mission accomplished.

Soria began the ninth by retiring Aaron Hill on a fly to center field before Edwin Encarnacion lashed a single through the left side. Pinch-hitter Juan Rivera fell behind 0-2 but worked the count full before lining a single to left that moved Encarnacion to second.

Soria struck out Jayson Nix on three pitches, including a 69-mph curve for a swinging strike three, and jumped ahead 0-2 on Mike McCoy. But four straight balls loaded the bases and put the crowd of 13,941 on edge.

"I never doubted my stuff," said Soria, who blew three straight save opportunities before temporarily losing his job. "It's just the way it is in baseball. Sometimes, baseball gives you an easy one; sometimes, it gives you a hard one."

Finally, Soria ended the game by retiring Corey Patterson on a pop to third.

"It was good to get that monkey off of Jack's back," manager Ned Yost said, "and get that first save after all of that mess that he's been through. Let him get on a good roll."

The victory enabled the Royals to salvage a split in their four-game series against Toronto after suffering a miserable four-game sweep last weekend against an injury-depleted Minnesota."