ANAHEIM -- While the 2025 season has been a step forward for right-hander José Soriano, he’ll need to be more consistent and avoid blowup outings if he’s to continue to develop as a frontline starter.
Soriano couldn’t build on his masterful performance against the Astros that saw him allow one hit over seven scoreless innings, as he turned in one of his worst starts of the year in the series opener against the Athletics on Friday. Soriano had trouble finding the strike zone and gave up eight runs on six hits and five walks over 2 1/3 innings in a 10-4 loss at Angel Stadium.
Interim manager Ray Montgomery said it’s part of the learning curve for Soriano, who needs to learn to pitch more effectively when he doesn’t have his best stuff.
“His last three or four have been as good as you could ask for, but guys that are going to take the next step to the level we want him to be, and think he can be, find ways to do it,” Montgomery said. “Whether it's efficiency, whether it's pitch mix, whether it's staying a little bit more unpredictable based on how you're feeling. Obviously, he's still got some growth to do there.”
It was also a continuation of his season-long struggles at home, as he’s 8-2 with a 2.47 ERA in 14 road starts but fell to 2-8 with a 5.90 ERA in 15 starts at Angel Stadium. It was similar last season, as he went 4-3 with a 2.74 ERA in 12 away appearances but went 2-4 with a 4.50 ERA in 10 outings at home. But Soriano believes it’s more of a coincidence than anything and has no issues with the mound.
“I don’t feel any difference,” Soriano said through interpreter Manny Del Campo. “There's inconsistency that I have at home. But I try to do my best, and that's it.”
Soriano has proved he can be dominant with nine outings of going at least seven innings and allowing two or fewer runs, but also has had seven starts where he’s allowed at least five runs, including eight runs and seven runs twice each. It’s a reason why he has a 0.95 ERA in his 10 wins but a 7.96 ERA in his 10 losses.
His troubles began immediately, as he walked the first three hitters he faced while registering just two strikes through his first 14 pitches. Despite falling behind Tyler Soderstrom with a 2-1 count, he got Soderstrom to ground into a run-scoring double play to mitigate the damage. He then gave up an RBI single to Jacob Wilson before getting out of the inning with a strikeout.
“My command just wasn’t there,” Soriano said. “I always try to stay positive and keep my head up and attack the zone. But there are just days that you can’t.”
The Angels quickly retook the lead with four runs in the first, and Soriano bounced back with three strikeouts in the second after issuing a leadoff walk to Zack Gelof on four pitches.
But it unraveled in the third inning with the A’s scoring seven times, including six runs against Soriano as he recorded just one out. He gave up a pair of singles before walking Wilson to load the bases with one out. Lawrence Butler brought home a run on an infield single that Oswald Peraza couldn’t handle and it opened up the floodgates.
Gelof tied it with an RBI single before Soriano uncorked a wild pitch to allow another run to score. JJ Bleday ended Soriano’s outing with a three-run homer down the left-field line on a 3-2 sinker over the outer half of the plate that essentially put the game away.
“I know he's had his troubles at home, and I don't know the reason for that, but tonight it just seemed like one that was out of sorts,” Montgomery said. “Even in the ones where he's had trouble at home, it was a little bit of pitch mix and combinations. But tonight just seemed like he was a little bit off or a lot off.”
Soriano’s outing caused his ERA to go from 3.68 to 4.07 in 29 starts this year. It’s encouraging he’s stayed healthy after throwing 113 innings in the Majors last season while jumping up to 163 2/3 innings this year. He’ll still have a chance to finish his campaign strong with roughly four more scheduled starts.
“The only thing I have to do is keep working,” Soriano said. “And keep positive.”