MILWAUKEE -- José Soriano’s season is over.
The right-hander was placed on the 15-day injured list with a right forearm contusion before Thursday night’s 5-2 loss to the Brewers, a day after he was hit by a line drive from Jake Bauers that left the bat at 107.4 mph. Left-hander Sam Aldegheri, ranked as the club’s No. 14 prospect by MLB Pipeline, was recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake and will be available out of the bullpen in the short term but is expected to take Soriano’s spot in the rotation.
“It’s feeling a little bit better than yesterday, but I’m still fighting,” Soriano said through interpreter Manny Del Campo. “But I don't think there's a reason to force anything with the way I feel with my arm right now.”
Soriano, 26, had a solid season, posting a 4.26 ERA in a career-high 31 starts and 169 innings. It was a big jump from last year, when he made 22 appearances (20 starts) and totaled 113 innings in his first year starting after throwing 42 innings in relief in '23.
Soriano led all qualified starting pitchers with a 65.3 percent ground-ball percentage, but he pitched much better on the road than at home. He went 2-8 with a 5.90 ERA in 15 home starts compared to 8-3 with a 2.91 ERA in 16 road starts.
“It was a pretty good season, a pretty special one,” Soriano said. “Especially because I got the opportunity to almost finish the season, which was one of my main primary goals.”
Angels interim manager Ray Montgomery said he spoke with Soriano before Thursday’s game and congratulated him on a strong season. He believes he can build on it and reach the 200-inning mark next year.
“I said, ‘Hey, you have everything to be proud of,’” Montgomery said. “And now he knows what it's like to make 31 starts in the big leagues and give us 160-plus innings. Next year, that'll have a two in front of it. Just so many positives, and he knows what he needs to work on.”
Soriano said his goal for next season is to be more consistent, as he had a few clunkers this season, including allowing eight runs and seven runs in a game twice each. He said he’ll lean on his teammates for advice, and he also communicates regularly with Hall of Famer and fellow Dominican Republic native Pedro Martínez.
“I think the priority for me is to come in stronger mentally,” Soriano said. “I think I fight through those bad moments well, but I need to get stronger.”
Aldegheri, meanwhile, was scratched from his start with Salt Lake on Wednesday after Soriano sustained his injury. Aldegheri, 23, pitched well in the Minors this year, posting a 3.72 ERA with 110 strikeouts in 128 1/3 innings with Double-A Rocket City to earn a recent promotion to Triple-A, where he allowed three runs in five innings in his lone start on Sept. 11.
After a slow start to the season, the Italy native had a 2.52 ERA in 25 innings in July, a 2.84 ERA in 31 2/3 innings in August and a 3.75 ERA in 12 innings in September.
“I changed a lot of stuff, mechanically and physically and mentally after the All-Star break, and it's been working,” Aldegheri said. “Just trying to stay more relaxed physically, the workload is better. And mentally, I was just trying to stay more in attack mode.”