2023 Stats
W-L
11-6
ERA
3.86
WHIP
1.27
K
181
SV
0
Rest-of-Season Projections
2023 Fantasy Outlook
Kikuchi is at a career crossroads as his non COVID-shortened seasons look terrible by most measures. His ERA and ERA estimators have been messy in each of those seasons, and then he further compounded problems in 2022 with a noticeable spike in his walk rate with a healthy dose of homers. Just six pitchers have ever thrown at least 100 innings with walk rates of at least 12% while allowing 2 homers per nine innings as Kikuchi did and those names include Oliver Perez, Andy Benes, and Derek Holland and each of their ERAs were over a full run higher than what Kikuchi somehow pulled off last season at 5.19. The strikeout rate was am impressive as he ran away from his cutter and threw more fastballs, but only his changeup was tough to hit for the league. It is perplexing to see someone with such poor overall numbers to have four pitches with Whiff rates above 25%, but that is what Kikuchi pulled off last season. Perhaps there is a brighter future for him in relief where he can pump up the velocity in shorter stints because he has had issues sustaining that over the course of a season. Funny data point: did you know Kikuchi's four-seam fastball generated more swings and misses in 2022 than four-seamers thrown by Justin Verlander and Alek Manoah? Now you do. Read Past Outlooks

Cruises to 11th win
Kikuchi (11-6) picked up the win Friday, giving up three runs on five hits and two walks over five-plus innings in an 11-4 victory over the Rays. He struck out four.
ANALYSIS
The southpaw blanked Tampa for five innings before fading in the sixth and giving up three straight extra-base hits to open the frame, but the Jays were already up 8-0 at that point. Kikuchi stumbles into a likely postseason run -- Toronto needs just one more win, or a Seattle loss, to clinch a wild-card spot -- with a 5.02 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 35:10 K:BB through 28.2 innings in September.
The southpaw blanked Tampa for five innings before fading in the sixth and giving up three straight extra-base hits to open the frame, but the Jays were already up 8-0 at that point. Kikuchi stumbles into a likely postseason run -- Toronto needs just one more win, or a Seattle loss, to clinch a wild-card spot -- with a 5.02 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 35:10 K:BB through 28.2 innings in September.
Pitching Stats
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2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2023 MLB Game Log
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Minor League Game Log

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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
88
Last 10 Games
87
Last 5 Games
82
How many pitches does Yusei Kikuchi generally throw?
1-10
11-20
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
81-90
91-100
101-110
111-120
121+
What part of the game does Yusei Kikuchi generally pitch?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2021
-31%
BAA vs LHP
2023
-20%
BAA vs LHP
BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2021vs Left | .184 | 104 | 27 | 65 | 13 | |||
Since 2021vs Right | .266 | 364 | 141 | 338 | 64 | |||
2023vs Left | .214 | 39 | 8 | 28 | 6 | |||
2023vs Right | .266 | 142 | 40 | 137 | 21 | |||
2022vs Left | .198 | 25 | 9 | 17 | 2 | |||
2022vs Right | .256 | 99 | 49 | 76 | 21 | |||
2021vs Left | .147 | 40 | 10 | 20 | 5 | |||
2021vs Right | .271 | 123 | 52 | 125 | 22 | |||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2021
-7%
ERA at Home
2023
-5%
ERA on Road
ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2021Home | 4.22 | 1.19 | 211.1 | 10.3 | 3.3 | ||||
Since 2021Away | 4.54 | 1.49 | 214.0 | 9.5 | 3.8 | ||||
2023Home | 3.97 | 1.18 | 79.1 | 9.9 | 3.1 | ||||
2023Away | 3.77 | 1.35 | 88.1 | 9.6 | 2.1 | ||||
2022Home | 4.58 | 1.16 | 55.0 | 11.8 | 3.8 | ||||
2022Away | 5.91 | 1.91 | 45.2 | 10.2 | 6.9 | ||||
2021Home | 4.21 | 1.22 | 77.0 | 9.7 | 3.2 | ||||
2021Away | 4.61 | 1.41 | 80.0 | 9.0 | 3.9 | ||||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Stat Review
How does Yusei Kikuchi compare to other starting pitchers?
This section compares his stats with all starting pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 120 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
3.77K/9
9.7BB/9
2.6HR/9
1.4Fastball
95.1 mphERA
3.86WHIP
1.27BABIP
.321GB/FB
1.17Left On Base
77.1%Exit Velocity
83.3 mphBarrels/BBE
5.1%Spin Rate
2345 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
25.8%Swinging Strike
12.6%Prospect Rankings History
Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2022
2021
2020
2019
2016
Kikuchi appeared set to deliver the breakout campaign that many projected prior to the 2021 season, maintaining a 3.46 ERA with an 81:26 K:BB across his first 80.2 innings and 13 starts. However, he crumbled from there, posting a 5.42 ERA across his last 16 outings. Perhaps coincidentally, his problems began with the crackdown on the use of foreign substances. When viewing Kikuchi's profile as a whole, home runs remain a significant problem (1.6 HR/9) and his walk rate also remains higher than would be desirable (9.3 BB%). However, by far the biggest problem for Kikuchi is the amount of hard contact he surrenders, highlighted by an 11% barrel rate, 47% hard hit rate, and 91.9 mph average exit velocity. Kikuchi agreed to a three-year, $36 million deal with the Blue Jays and will be pitching in the AL East for the foreseeable future.
More Fantasy News

Goes four innings vs. Tampa
Kikuchi did not factor into the decision Sunday, allowing three runs on nine hits over four innings against Tampa Bay. He struck out seven.
ANALYSIS
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Lined up for Sunday
Kikuchi (neck) is scheduled to start Sunday's game at Tampa Bay, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.
ANALYSIS
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Removed due to cramp
Kikuchi was removed from Tuesday's 7-1 win over the Yankees with a left upper trap muscle cramp, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.
ANALYSIS
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Sharp in no-decision
Kikuchi came away with a no-decision Friday in the Blue Jays' 5-4 win over the Royals, allowing one run on three hits and a walk over five innings. He struck out eight.
ANALYSIS
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Takes fifth loss
Kikuchi (9-5) allowed six runs (two earned) on six hits and four walks while striking out six over 4.2 innings, taking the loss versus the Rockies on Saturday.
ANALYSIS
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