PHOENIX -- The Michael Soroka signing at last year's Winter Meetings didn't generate much buzz, but through four starts it's shaping up to be a masterstroke by Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen.
Soroka tossed another gem Friday night, holding the Blue Jays to a pair of runs over seven innings as the Diamondbacks won the series opener, 6-3, at Chase Field.
"He's got great stuff," Arizona third baseman Nolan Arenado said. "He kind of always has. I know he's dealt with his share of injuries and different things, but he's got great stuff, great competitor, hard worker, and it's been a lot of fun playing behind him."
It marked the first time Soroka had gone seven innings since Aug. 22, 2019.
That seems like a lifetime ago for Soroka, who finished second in the NL Rookie of the Year Award voting and was an All-Star with the Braves that season.
Injuries to his Achilles and shoulder derailed him, but he never stopped working and trying to find new ways to stay healthy. That included ways he moved his body on the mound as well as his pitching mechanics.
"I think I'm better than I've ever been," Soroka said. "I mean, everybody goes through some sort of injuries at some point in their career, or struggles with performance. And I think for myself, it has always been there. I've always been able to kind of show that ability and give teams a reason to believe in me, and I'm very thankful that I'm with an organization that does as much as anybody. So, it's easy to go out there and want to prove them right.
"I've always seen it myself, and it means a lot when an organization sees that in me, too."
No doubt the Diamondbacks saw that potential in him when he inked a one-year, $7.5 million contract that includes incentives and a $10 million mutual option for 2027, which could well prove to be a bargain for Arizona if the right-hander keeps pitching the way he has been.
Soroka remains unbeaten on the season, becoming just the second Arizona pitcher to win his first four starts in a Diamondbacks uniform. He joins Chase Anderson, who set the club record with five straight wins from May 11-June 8, 2014.
Arenado played a role in getting Soroka the win, as he went 2-for-4 with a homer and a pair of RBIs.
After a tough start to the season, Arenado has begun to heat up. His homer Friday was his third in his last four games.
"I think it was just a heater in and he missed," Arenado said of his homer off Eric Lauer. "He just kind of missed over the plate, and I was able to put a good swing on it. I think that's what this game is about, if they make mistakes, gotta be able to make them pay. And haven't really been able to do that, but the last few games, I feel like I've started hit the ball hard and make some good decisions, and it's been nice to see."
Soroka's high in innings pitched this year was a 5 2/3 outing last time out against the Phillies. He was able to get much deeper this time around thanks to an aggressive approach by the Blue Jays, who swung early in counts against him.
Soroka threw just eight pitches in the first inning, 10 in the second and 11 in the third.
As they demonstrated in last year's World Series, the Blue Jays are a contact-oriented team, so Soroka adjusted his approach against them.
"They have a lot of good hitters over there that put the ball in play, don't have a ton of swing and miss," Soroka said. "It's been a thing of ours to not try and get swing and miss. So, it's a good day to practice that and just let them put the ball in play early in counts. Haven't had a game like that in a while. So felt good to kind of cruise through a little bit."