A day after ending an era by trading Kevin Gausman to the Cubs, the Blue Jays acquired a starter to replace him, acquiring right-hander José Soriano from the Angels for three prospects. The deal sends SS Arjun Nimmala (Toronto’s No. 2 prospect), OF Eddie Micheletti and RHP Angel Rivero to the Halos.
Nobody had a more impressive start to the season than Soriano, who posted a 0.84 ERA through his first seven starts through the end of April. He came back down to earth with a 5.14 ERA over his next 13 outings to finish the first half with a 3.49 ERA in 20 starts.
Soriano started the second half by throwing seven strong innings against the Cardinals, looking much more like he did early in the year. The right-hander followed with five innings of one-run ball (zero earned runs) against the Giants on July 26, and the Angels scratched him from what would have been his final pre-Deadline start against the Brewers on Saturday, citing trade uncertainty.
The key for Soriano is simply throwing strikes, as he’s had issues with walks this season but has tantalizing good stuff. He’s also just 27 years old and remains under team control through 2028, so he’s not a rental player.
TRADE DETAILS
Blue Jays receive: RHP José Soriano
Angels receive: SS Arjun Nimmala (TOR’s No. 2 prospect), OF Eddie Micheletti, RHP Angel Rivero
There are few pitchers in baseball with an arsenal that can match Soriano’s, as he possesses a 96.5 mph power sinker to go along with his 92 mph splitter and 85 mph knuckle curveball. He’s also been throwing his 98 mph four-seamer much more than in the past, which has helped him generate more strikeouts at the top of the zone. Soriano is also just one of a handful of starting pitchers with a ground-ball rate above 50 percent and was an incredible 65.3 percent last year.
This is Soriano’s third year as a starting pitcher after he served as an effective reliever with a 3.64 ERA in 42 innings as a rookie in ’23. He’s built up his workload since then, including a season-high 169 innings last year, and is set to eclipse that total this year.
Soriano underwent Tommy John surgery as a Minor Leaguer in February 2020 and was lost to the Pirates with the No. 1 overall pick in the Rule 5 Draft. But he was returned to the Angels in November 2021 after he had another operation on his right elbow. Soriano made a full recovery, and it turned out to be a blessing for the Angels.
