Dodgers @ Angels August 11, 2025: Yamamoto opens the Freeway Series in Anaheim

The Dodgers (68-50) blew their chance of sweeping the best team in the AL yesterday, as Blake Treinen and Alex Vesia combined to give up three solo homers over the last two innings for a 5-4 loss. It was still a positive series overall, as the offense came to life a bit (even yesterday, they blew a bunch of chances with runners in scoring position but they actually had runners in scoring position) and the pitching was strong for most of the series. They took two of three for the third time in their last four series, but the lead in the West is still at only two games as the Padres took two of three from Boston.

Tonight, the Dodgers pause their homestand to head up to Anaheim for a three-game set before returning home for the big weekend series with San Diego. The Angels (56-62) were three games under .500 at the deadline, made a couple small but win-now trades at the deadline, and now have gone 3-6 since the deadline. Naturally, the Angels did sweep the Dodgers when they met in LA back in May and outscored them 23-15. The Angels scored six runs in the first and third games of the series and exploded for a season-high 11 runs in the middle game, led by a five-run seventh off Ben Casparius and Kirby Yates. This series won’t feature old friend Chris Taylor, who’s on the IL with a hand fracture for the second time since joining the Angels.

	6:38 PM		Anaheim
DH	Ohtani (L)	SS	Neto
SS	Betts	1B	Schanuel (L)
1B	Freeman (L)	DH	Trout
C	Smith	LF	Ward
3B	Muncy (L)	3B	Moncada (S)
CF	Pages	RF	Adell
LF	Conforto (L)	2B	Rengifo (S)
2B	Freeland (S)	C	d’Arnaud
RF	Call	CF	Teodosio
P	Yamamoto (R)	P	Soriano (R)

Yoshinobu Yamamoto gets the start coming off a strong outing in Tampa. Yamamoto tossed 5 2/3 shutout innings with six strikeouts and no walks in 88 pitches. He allowed five hits and needed to be essentially perfect as the Dodgers continued to not give him much run support. They finally broke through in the top of the sixth, and Yama got two outs in the bottom before giving up a single to end his night. In four starts since Yamamoto’s nightmare start against the Brewers, he’s allowed four runs and 18 hits in 24 1/3 innings with 30 strikeouts and only five walks. Thanks to Thursday’s off day and the rotation starting to get healthier, this is Yamamoto’s first start on six days’ rest since May 2. In the five starts he made on six days’ rest in April/May, Yamamoto allowed one earned run (three unearned) and 16 hits in 30 innings (and somehow only went 3-2 in that stretch). Yamamoto’s never faced the Angels in his career and has only ever faced one current Angel, deadline acquisition Oswald Peraza. He saw Peraza when the Yankees came to LA in June and Peraza went 0-for-2 with a strikeout.

Jose Soriano makes his 25th start of the season for the Angels. He’s posted a 4.01 ERA/3.55 FIP in a career-high 137 innings and has shown flashes of dominance this season. He’s thrown six shutouts of six or more innings so far and has allowed two or fewer runs in 13 of his 24 starts. He’s also been a bit prone to having horrible starts, with six outings of five or more runs allowed. He’s coming off one of those bad starts last Tuesday, allowing seven runs on seven hits in four innings against Tampa. The Dodgers haven’t seen Soriano as a starter but saw him in relief in his rookie season. Soriano faced six batters and four of them reached on two walks and two singles, including an RBI single by Max Muncy.

Soriano is a pretty extreme ground ball pitcher. There’s three qualified pitchers at or above a 60 percent ground ball rate this season. Andre Pallante is at 60 percent, Framber Valdez is at 60.2 percent, and Soriano is running a 66.7 percent ground ball rate. If he keeps at his pace and qualifies, his ground ball rate would be the highest out of any qualified pitcher since Dodger legend Derek Lowe in 2006 (67 percent). It would be a winning formula for a normal franchise, but the Angels infield defense has a -31 OAA this season, six lower than the second-worst team (Washington). While the groundball rate is high, Soriano also has the second-worst walk rate among qualified starters (10.4 percent).

Soriano mostly throws two pitches. He’s thrown a sinker 51 percent of the time and averages 97.1 MPH with it. He’s also thrown a knuckle curve 26.4 percent of the time and three other pitches around seven percent of the time each.

Alex Call gets the start in right today with Teoscar Hernandez getting a day off. Alex Freeland gets another start at second.

——

Some more reliever rehab updates today. Michael Kopech faced hitters today, and Yates and Tanner Scott are expected to do so in the near future as well.

#Dodgers Michael Kopech faced hitters in live BP today. Could go on rehab assignment next. Kirby Yates expected to face hitters this week and Tanner Scott maybe next week.

— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) August 12, 2025

Kopech’s next step could be a rehab assignment. Yates will likely also face hitters this week and Scott might face hitters next weekend.

——

First pitch is scheduled for 6:38 PM and will be shown on SportsNet LA.