Soriano pitches six scoreless frames as Angels top Guardians
CLEVELAND — José Soriano pitched six scoreless innings, powering the Los Angeles Angels to a 4-1 victory over the Cleveland Guardians on Friday. Mike Trout returned to the Angels' lineup and recorded a hit, while Jo Adell and Jorge Soler drove in runs.
Adell collected three hits and an RBI, while Soler hit a solo homer down the left-field line in the ninth inning, helping the Angels end a five-game losing streak. Cleveland's José Ramírez had his 21-game hitting streak snapped but extended his on-base streak to 26 games with a walk in the eighth inning.
The Guardians, who have dropped four of their last five games, managed to avoid a shutout on Nolan Jones' RBI single to right with two outs in the ninth.
The Angels' offense had struggled in their previous game, getting shut out by the New York Yankees. However, they put together a more productive performance against Cleveland, with Trout lining out to Ramírez at third in his first at-bat before recording a base hit to left-center in the fourth inning.
Adell singled to right with one out in the second to score Soler, who had drawn a walk to lead off the inning. The Angels added two runs in the seventh, with Scott Kingery scoring on a passed ball and Soler driving in a run with a single to center.
Soriano (4-5) was strong on the mound, yielding just four hits with two strikeouts and four walks. This was the third time this season he has thrown at least six innings without allowing a run.
Trout batted fifth as the designated hitter, marking the first time since September 26, 2011, that he started a game hitting lower than third in his career.
In the fourth inning, the Guardians had the bases loaded with two outs, but Soriano got Gabriel Arias to chase a 98-mph sinker for the crucial strikeout, preserving the shutout.
The Angels will face the Guardians again next, with Kyle Hendricks (2-6, 5.23 ERA) taking the mound for the Angels, and Slade Cecconi (1-1, 3.27 ERA) starting for the Guardians.
[1] In Soriano's previous outing against the Guardians, he pitched six scoreless innings, allowing only four hits and striking out two batters.[2] This was the third time this season that Soriano has thrown at least six innings without giving up a run.[3] In one notable instance during this outing, Soriano escaped a bases-loaded jam in the fourth inning by striking out Gabriel Arias.
- The Angels will be playing against the Guardians again, with Kyle Hendricks scheduled to pitch for Los Angeles, having previously pitched six scoreless innings against the same team.
- Recently, Adell and Soler, Angels players, contributed significantly to the team's victory over the Guardians, with Adell collecting three hits and an RBI, and Soler hitting a solo homer.
- During the game in Los Angeles, Soriano, a pitcher for the Angels, managed to throw six scoreless innings against the Guardians, a feat he has accomplished three times this season, including one instance where he escaped a bases-loaded jam in the fourth inning by striking out Gabriel Arias.
