The Los Angeles Angels will rely on right-hander Jose Soriano on Sunday afternoon as they try to avoid a three-game sweep at the hands of the host Toronto Blue Jays.
Soriano previously faced Toronto on April 22 in Anaheim, when he threw five innings of scoreless, seven-hit ball. Although he didn’t get a decision, the Angels won that game 7-3 to avoid a sweep of their own. In three career appearances (two starts) against the Blue Jays, Soriano is 0-0 with a 3.09 ERA.
However, Soriano (5-2, 1.74 ERA) has dropped his last two outings, both against the Chicago White Sox. On May 4, he allowed five runs on eight hits and three walks over four innings in a 6-0 home loss.
“It was just one of those days where you can’t control the strike zone and they put good swings on it, too,” Soriano said after the setback. “It’s a little tough when you face the same team (in consecutive starts) and they already see what you’ve got. But we have to continue to battle. I didn’t have the result, but I battled to the end.”
The Blue Jays have taken the first two games of this series, including a 14-1 blowout on Saturday that was fueled by a seven-run fifth inning. The Angels’ defensive struggles compounded their problems.
“It just seemed like everything they touched fell in,” Angels manager Kurt Suzuki said. “Maybe better execution, but at the end of the day, you minimize some hard contact. They do a good job of putting the ball in play and they found holes.”
Infielder Adam Frazier delivered the Angels’ only run of the series with a pinch-hit double in the eighth inning, then pitched the bottom half, allowing four runs.
Toronto is expected to use a bullpen game, opening with right-hander Spencer Miles (1-0, 3.50) followed by lefty Eric Lauer (1-4, 6.03). Miles has made one career appearance against the Angels, tossing 1 1/3 scoreless relief innings in a 4-2 road win on April 21. Lauer started against the Angels on April 22 and allowed three runs over five innings without a decision. In three career games (two starts) versus the Angels, he holds a 3.97 ERA.
Right fielder Addison Barger returned to the Blue Jays lineup on Saturday after missing time with a sprained ankle suffered on April 5. He made an immediate impact, drawing two walks and throwing out Jorge Soler at home plate from right field in the second inning after catching a line drive from Vaughn Grissom.
“I was pretty happy,” Barger said. “Throwing the ball from the outfield is one of my favorite things about the game.”
His throw was clocked at 101.2 mph, the hardest assist from an outfielder in the majors this season and the hardest recorded by a Toronto position player in the Statcast era (since 2015).
“He’s got a great arm,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said. “People know that it’s one thing to have a good arm. It’s another thing to be accurate with it, too.”
Barger went 0-for-3 and is now 1-for-22 (.045) in nine games this season. Toronto optioned outfielder Yohendrick Pinango to Triple-A Buffalo in the corresponding move.
One bright spot for the Angels came in the ninth inning when catcher Omar Martinez singled as a pinch hitter in his first major league at-bat. He was recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake on Friday after Travis d’Arnaud (foot) was placed on the 10-day injured list.
