If you spent any time scrolling through a Jose Soriano game log during the 2024 season, you probably noticed something weird happening around May. It wasn't just that a guy who spent years as a flamethrowing reliever suddenly turned into a workhorse starter. It was the way he did it. Most pitchers who make that jump lose two or three miles per hour on their heater. Soriano? He just kept pumping 99 mph sinkers into the zone until hitters basically gave up.
He's a unicorn.
Honestly, the Angels have been desperate for a homegrown ace since... well, a long time. Seeing Soriano transition from a Rule 5 Draft pick with Tommy John surgery in his rearview mirror to a legitimate rotation anchor was one of the few bright spots in Anaheim. But if you're just looking at the surface-level stats, you're missing the real story of how his pitch mix evolved game by game.
Decoding the Jose Soriano Game Log
Early in the year, the box scores looked a bit shaky. You had that relief appearance against Baltimore followed by a couple of short starts. But look at the April 16th game against Tampa Bay. That’s the "Eureka" moment. He went five innings, gave up one hit, and fanned six.
He stopped pitching like a closer.
In his early career, Soriano was all about the four-seamer and a devastating power curve. It was "here it is, try to hit it" logic. By the middle of the 2024 season, his game log shows a massive shift toward the sinker. This wasn't a soft sinker. We are talking about a pitch that averaged nearly 98 mph with late life. It’s the reason his groundball rate stayed elite even as his pitch counts climbed into the 90s.
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Then came the June 12th outing against Arizona. Eight innings. Two hits. One earned run. That is the definitive performance in any Jose Soriano game log analysis. It proved he could maintain his velocity deep into a game, something many scouts doubted he could do with his high-effort delivery. When he’s on, the sinker-curve combo is basically unhittable because the eye level of the hitter is constantly being manipulated.
The Mid-Season Hiccup and Injury Concerns
It wasn't all sunshine. You’ll see a gap in the log during late August when he hit the Injured List with arm fatigue. That’s the risk. When you throw as hard as Jose does, the ulnar collateral ligament is always under immense stress. The Angels were careful. They shut him down when the "snap" on his curveball started to fade, which showed up in his August 11th start against Washington where he only managed one strikeout over six innings.
The lack of swings and misses in that specific game was a huge red flag. Usually, Soriano lives on the edge of the K-zone. When his strikeout rate dips, it’s a sign his release point is drifting.
The Secret Sauce: Why the Sinker Matters
Most people think "flamethrower" and imagine a high four-seam fastball at the top of the zone. Think Spencer Strider. But Soriano is different. His Jose Soriano game log data from Statcast shows he actually prefers the bottom of the zone.
By throwing a sinker at 99 mph, he creates a situation where even if a hitter makes contact, they're just pounding the ball into the dirt. In 2024, his groundball percentage was among the best for right-handed starters. This is why he doesn't give up many home runs. You can't lift a 100-mph bowling ball.
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- April-May: Finding the rhythm, heavy reliance on the four-seamer.
- June: The peak. Mastery of the sinker. High efficiency.
- July: Battles with command. Walks start to creep up in the game logs against Texas and Seattle.
- August: The fatigue wall.
It’s a classic trajectory for a converted reliever.
Pitch Usage Shifts by the Numbers
If you look at the game log from July 2nd against Oakland, you see he threw 34% sinkers and 30% curveballs. That 1-1 ratio is his sweet spot. When he gets "fastball happy" and the sinker usage climbs above 50%, he actually becomes more predictable. Hitters just sit on the heat and pray. But when that curveball is clicking—the one that drops off the table at 88 mph—it makes the 100 mph heater feel like 110.
Nuance is everything in the big leagues. Soriano's ability to adjust his eye-level is what moved him from a "thrower" to a "pitcher."
Looking Toward the 2025 and 2026 Horizon
What does this mean for his future? Well, the 2024 Jose Soriano game log provides a blueprint for a frontline starter. He finished the year with a sub-4.00 ERA and a WHIP that hovered around 1.20 for most of the summer. For a guy with his raw stuff, those are winning numbers.
The big question is durability.
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Can he throw 160 innings? He hasn't done it yet. His 2024 total was a career-high, but the Angels babied him for a reason. If you're following his progress, you need to watch the "Innings Pitched" column more than the strikeouts. If he can consistently hit the sixth or seventh inning without a velocity drop, he's a Top 20 starter in the American League.
The stuff is undeniable. The results are becoming consistent.
Actionable Insights for Tracking Soriano
To truly understand his trajectory, don't just look at the final score. Check these three specific metrics in the next Jose Soriano game log you see:
- Sinker Velocity in Inning 5: If he's still hitting 98+, his arm is fresh and his mechanics are locked in.
- First Pitch Strikes: Soriano's biggest enemy is the walk. When he falls behind 1-0, his OBA (Opponent Batting Average) skyrockets because he's forced to come into the heart of the plate.
- Horizontal Break on the Curve: When he’s tired, his curveball gets "loopy." You want to see that sharp, downward bite that disappears below the knees.
If you are a fantasy baseball player or just a die-hard Angels fan, the game log is your crystal ball. The transition from the bullpen to the rotation is rarely this successful, and Soriano is proving that he isn't just a flash in the pan. He’s the real deal, provided his elbow holds up under the incredible torque he generates. Keep an eye on his split-finger development too; he started tinkering with it late in the season to give lefties something else to think about. That could be the final piece of the puzzle.