José Soriano's Hot Start has Angels Positioned for Success
April 12, 2026 - Written by AJ Stone
Pitchers in MLB history with at least 25 IP, an ERA below 0.50, and less than 10 hits allowed in their first 4 starts of a season:
— Just Baseball (@JustBB_Media) April 12, 2026
2026 Jose Soriano: 27.0 IP | 0.33 ERA | 9 Hits Allowed
End of List 🤯 pic.twitter.com/jEFkcHXJr6
Paul Skenes and Tarik Skubal are often looked at as MLB’s 1-2 punch. The 1A and 1B on the mound, and then everyone else. What if I told you the Angels currently have MLB’s best arm by a total landslide?
José Soriano has always had the arm talent to be a top-tier arm in the game. Up until this year, however, he wasn’t quite able to put it all together.
Soriano sports a sinker that touches triple-digits, a knuckle curve that rivals any curveball in the sport, and a four-seam, splitter, and slider to round it all out. His repertoire has always been nasty. This season, though, he’s been next to unhittable.
The numbers on Soriano’s Baseball Savant page are masterful. As of April 11th, he ranks in the 100th percentile in pitching run value and breaking ball run value. His fastball has averaged 97.5mph, and he’s living on the ground with a 65.9% groundball rate.
The Angels have long been searching for a frontline starter to help push them back into the realm of competitiveness. After making no big additions this offseason, most fans thought they’d be in for another middling performance from the rotation.
Think again. The Soriano breakout is real. As long as he remains in the zone, his stuff plays against the best of the best. So far, through his first three starts, the flamethrower owns a 0.33 ERA and a 4-0 record.
Pairing Soriano’s success with the early dominance of closer Jordan Romano has been a recipe for success on the defensive side of the ball.
The Halos didn’t expect to have prowess on the mound, at least not like this. If the production from Soriano persists, LA fans are in for a wild ride in the AL West, and extension talks could come sooner rather than later.
Disclaimer : (1) Links of players are property of MLB, MiLB, and Baseball Reference. (2) InsideHalos is a fan-made site not affiliated with Angels Baseball.
