After MLB lockout, 3 potential landing spots for Yusei Kikuchi
Yusei Kikuchi enters the 2022 season as a mystery with plenty of potential in the minds of many clubs. That’s why it’s not only hard to assess his value in the open market, but also which teams may be willing to take a chance on the 30-year-old left-handed starting pitcher.
Last season with the Seattle Mariners was a tale of two campaigns for Kikuchi. He started the season strong, posting a 6-4 mark with a 3.48 ERA before the All-Star break, with opponents slashing just .205/.276/.370 in 16 starts covering 98.1 innings. With the performance, he earned his first All-Star Game nod.
However, after the All-Star break, Kikuchi looked like a completely different pitcher. The opponent slash line jumped to .300/.381/.525 and the ERA expanded to 5.98 in 13 starts over 58.2 innings.
Why the jump? Sources say that Kikuchi was fatigued and that he knew the Mariners were not going to exercise his four-year, $66 million club option. Therefore, his focus on the present drifted more into what was to come rather than his current time with the Mariners.
The first half of last season was one of the few runs in a Seattle uniform over the course of three seasons where Kikuchi flashed the form that he showed during his time in Japan’s NPB where he posted a 2.77 ERA in 158 games (108 starts) covering more than 1,000 innings.
After declining a $13 million player option from Mariners for the 2022 season, it seems that his time in Seattle is over. So where will he land in 2022?
Let’s look at three potential landing spots for Yusei Kikuchi
Free agent pitcher Yusei Kikuchi could sign with the Chicago Cubs
Once it was apparent that Kikuchi was not a part of Seattle’s plans, rumors about Kikuchi and the Chicago Cubs immediately went into overdrive. As part of MLBTradeRumors.com’s look at the top 50 free agents (where Kikuchi came in at number 34), all three writers taking part in the article predicted Kikuchi would end up with the Cubs. He was also linked to the Cubs in this MLB.com article.
The Cubs have already landed Marcus Stroman and Wade Miley this offseason, but could use another arm in Kikuchi, especially with Kyle Hendricks coming off a disappointing season and the back end of the rotation very much a question mark.
Additionally, Miley is the only current projected starter who is a southpaw, so adding Kikuchi makes sense on that level as well.
With the Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals projected as the favorites in the National League Central at this stage of the offseason, adding Kikuchi would, in theory, strengthen the rotation and give the Cubs a chance to see if they could move up in the standings.
The New York Mets could be a potential landing spot for Yusei Kikuchi
While the Chicago Cubs have been linked to Kikuchi for perhaps the longest of any team, there is more smoke around the Mets and Kikuchi rumors heading into the lockout than there was with the Cubs.
In fact, MLB insider Jon Heyman piqued some interest on the day the lockout went into effect, tweeting that the Mets and Toronto Blue Jays both had interest in Kikuchi. He also said that Kikuchi had three-year offers on the table, but it was not clear from which teams those offers originated.
Kikuchi would certainly be an interesting fit for the Mets. The franchise has already landed Max Scherzer this offseason and he is expected to lead the rotation alongside Jacob deGrom. Carlos Corrasco and Taijuan Walker are expected to fill the middle of the rotation, but that’s where adding Kikuchi into the mix would, in theory, strengthen what comes on the mound after the two-headed monster of deGrom and Scherzer.
Would a three-year deal for Kikuchi fit into New York’s salary structure? Depending on what the new Collective Bargaining Agreement looks like, it is very possible.
The Toronto Blue Jays could be a potential landing spot for Yusei Kikuchi
As mentioned previously, the Blue Jays have been linked to Kikuchi as a team of interest by Jon Heyman on Twitter.
It will be interesting to see how much the Blue Jays will chase Kikuchi after they have already rebuilt their rotation this offseason. Toronto lost Steven Matz and Robbie Ray but replaced them with Kevin Gausman and Jose Berrios, spending $241 million to land those two pitchers and stabilize a rotation (including Hyun Jin Ryu and Alek Manoah) that could already be considered one of the best in the American League East, if not the entire AL.
The fifth starter is still a question mark for the Blue Jays, with Nate Pearson and Ross Stripling reportedly in the mix to round out the rotation. That’s where adding Kikuchi could make the Blue Jays a definite force with the rotation in what is expected to be a very tight AL East race.
And let’s not forget that the Blue Jays reportedly checked in on the availability of some Cincinnati Reds pitchers before the lockout went into effect as well.
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Much like the Mets, the Blue Jays have already spent a considerable amount on pitching. Are the Blue Jays one of the teams that has already extended a three-year deal to Kikuchi in an effort to make one of their current strengths (the rotation) even stronger? That will be one of the most intriguing questions to be answered once the lockout ends.