José Soriano Has Dominated the Dodgers Before

Jose Soriano is on the hill tonight hoping to get the Angels a win. The last time he faced the crosstown rivals he was brilliant. He will need to have a good performance tonight if the Angels are going to have a shot at unseating the defending champions. Can he do it?

Jose Soriano shutout the Dodgers August 11, 2025

Part of the Angels sweeping the Dodgers in that series (and for the year) this game was a highlight for both the Angels and Soriano last season. On the day he threw 6 scoreless innings and recorded 6 strikeouts while only allowing 2 hits and 2 walks.

One of those strikeouts was of Shohei Ohtani who also grounded out and walked against Soriano. Two of the strikeouts were on last night's hero for the Dodgers Andy Pages. All in all, Soriano dominated all but one player in the Dodgers lineup.

Most of the Dodgers hitters from that game will be in their lineup tonight. If Soriano can repeat his last performance, the Angels will have a great opportunity to win.

Can Jose Soriano again shut down the Dodgers offense?

In a word, yes. Jose Soriano is having the best season of his career. He is pitching better in 2026 than he was when he faced the Dodgers in 2025.

On the year, Soriano ranks in the top 10% of MLB in fastball velocity and whiff percentage. He is in the top 2% in pitching run value and top 1% in offspeed pitching value. That 1% is largely due to his new change up which, along with his knuckle curve, gives him two quality off speed offerings.

Jose Soriano is simply dominant in 2026 and he is perfectly capable of throwing a gem at any time; even against a stacked lineup.

Reasons for concern

One game is a small sample size. Some times a pitcher has a really good night or an offense just fails to click. Putting too much stock into one game can be dangerous. And Soriano does not have a long track record against the Dodgers. He had only faced them on previous time in a relief appearance.

Mookie Betts and Will Smith accounted for the two hits off Soriano last August and both should be in the lineup tonight. Add in the fact Kyle Tucker replaces a Michael Conforto who struck out twice against Soriano and the lineup is deeper. Also, Andy Pages is playing much better than the guy Soriano struck out twice last season.

Expect Jose Soriano to limit the Dodgers offense

I would never bet on any pitcher shutting out the Dodgers offense. I would definitely not bet on it in consecutive games. This lineup is deep and powerful and at some point will score against Soriano.

But in his last outing Soriano picked up 7 strikeouts against the Toronto Blue Jays and they have the lowest strikeout total in MLB. The Dodgers are middle of the pack in that category so Soriano should be able to limit the traffic on the base paths.

Walks are the big concern with Soriano but outside of one bad start against the White Sox he has kept the free passes in check. If the Dodgers have to hit their way into rallies that will be tough. Expect a solo shot or perhaps an rbi double at some point but overall Soriano should be able to put up zeroes in most innings.

The question is on the Angels offense. If Soriano limits the Dodgers to 2 runs in 6 innings, can the bats let him leave with a lead?

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