Veteran pitcher Yusei Kikuchi is on the move again.
After splitting the 2024 MLB season with the Toronto Blue Jays and the Houston Astros, the Japanese left-hander will suit up for the Los Angeles Angels in 2025.
Kikuchi, a free agent, and the Angels have finalized a three-year, $63 million USD (¥9.5 billion JPY) contract, the American League West team announced on Wednesday, November 27.
For the Astros, Kikuchi was a stellar presence on the mound after being traded from the Blue Jays on July 29.
In 10 starts for Houston, he had a 5-1 record and a 2.70 ERA in 60 innings and fanned 76 batters. What's more, the Astros were 8-0 in his first eight starts for the ballclub.
His combined pitching totals for the Blue Jays and Astros in 2024 included a 9-10 record, a 4.05 ERA, 44 walks and 206 strikeouts in 175⅔ innings.
Angels general manager Perry Minasian said Kikuchi, 33, has made noticeable improvements as a pitcher, adding that 2024 was a breakthrough of sorts for him in Major League Baseball.
"He obviously had a strong finish with Houston after the trade, but we really liked what we saw before that, too," Minasian said, according to MLB.com. "When you look at his underlying numbers ― the strikeouts, the walks ― that was a quality year overall."
The Angels went 63-99 in 2024 and missed the playoffs for the 10th straight season. Conversely, the Astros (88-73) won the AL West Division title.
Change of Scenery for Yusei Kikuchi
In 2023, Kikuchi went 11-6 with a 3.86 ERA in 32 starts for Toronto, setting an MLB career-high win total.
A year later, he almost reached double figures in victories again.
As he settles in with the Angels, look for Kikuchi to be a top-of-the-rotation starter for the rebuilding team.
At the same time, look for the native of Morioka, Iwate Prefecture, to work diligently to seek to emulate what worked so well for him over the last few months of the 2024 campaign.
Minasian gave an insightful explanation of why Kikuchi was such an effective pitcher while with Houston.
"There were some pitch-mix things, and his use of the slider, obviously, was increased in Houston," Minasian said, according to MLB.com. "His effectiveness with his fastball, especially up in the zone and his ability to get ahead of hitters, was top five in baseball in the second half of the season."
MLB.com reported that Kikuchi averaged a career-high 95.5 mph (153.7 kph) on his four-seam fastball in 2024.
RELATED:
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Author: Ed Odeven
Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.
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