Soriano silenced the Houston Astros, striking out seven over six shutout innings. His dominant sinker and knuckle-curve ignited an Opening Day win.
The Los Angeles Angels have one win in one try to start the 2026 campaign, beating their American League West rival Houston Astros to a score of 3-0 in Houston on Thursday afternoon. While several moments brought some encouragement to Angels fans, perhaps the most encouraging part was the starting pitching performance.
Right-handed starter Jose Soriano earned his spot as the Halos’ Opening Day starter to kick off the season in his fourth major league season. The 27-year-old certainly made the most of his opportunity, providing a much-needed sigh of relief for Angels fans concerned about their starting pitching options.
Soriano went for six shutout innings against the Astros’ lineup on Thursday, giving up just two hits and four walks while striking out seven batters. He reached 91 pitches during his lights-out performance, showcasing his wide range of effective pitches.
His sinker was his go-to in his first start of the year, using it 33% of the time while averaging out a little above 98 mph and recording a 38.9 whiff percentage.
The flamethrower is much more than a hard thrower, however, and he displayed that with his secondary knuckle-curve against a hopeless Astros lineup. The Halos’ No. 1 starter recorded a ridiculous 72.7 whiff percentage on his go-to breaking ball. His four-seamer, which averaged a smidge over 99 mph, was also effective on Thursday, even hitting triple digits just one start into the year.
Angels relievers Wilbert Urena, Chase Silseth, Drew Pomeranz, and Jordan Romano finished off the shutout, but Soriano undoubtedly stole the show on the mound in the first game of the year. He may not have had the most inspiring spring training, but Soriano looked every bit of an Opening Day starter when it mattered most on Thursday.
There will be no complaints from Angels fans towards Soriano, who could be a rare bright spot in this year’s Halos’ pitching staff. The bottom end of the rotation is extremely shaky, and the Angels are going to need everything they can get from their only three trustworthy starters in Soriano, Yusei Kikuchi, and Reid Detmers (who himself is a bit of a question mark as he returns to a starting role).
He may not be an ace, but Soriano played like a true top-end rotation guy for the Halos in their 2026 opener. There are likely to be many down moments this year for the Angels, so starting the year in a positive light is something that all fans can appreciate. Both the fans and Soriano would love to see more ball games like today this season.