Wouldn’t it be funny if the Toronto Blue Jays re-signed Yusei Kikuchi?

The Blue Jays signed Kikuchi before the beginning of the 2022 season. After a dismal first season that saw him pitch out of the bullpen for the final month and a half of the season, the left-handed pitcher had a great 2023 with the team. 
After parts of three seasons with the Blue Jays, Kikuchi was traded to the Houston Astros before the 2024 trade deadline for MLB-ready prospects Will Wagner, Joey Loperfido, and Jake Bloss. All three prospects have a legitimate chance of being impact players for the Jays in the future, but the trade was a win-win for both teams.
Let’s take a look at Yusei Kikuchi in the latest Free Agency Profile.
<h2>Yusei Kikuchi’s stats</h2>
Kikuchi had a strong start to his season with the Jays, but finished his 2024 season with the Jays with a 4.75 ERA and a 3.66 FIP in 115.2 innings pitched, along with a 26.2 K% and a 6 BB%. While the ERA was rough, there was certainly an intriguing pitcher in Kikuchi, and the Houston Astros paid a premium.
Without question, the package the Blue Jays got for Kikuchi was a good one. However, Kikuchi was terrific for the Astros, as he finished the season with a 2.70 ERA and a 3.07 FIP in 60 innings pitched, along with a 31.8 K% and a 5.9 BB%. Sadly, he didn’t get an opportunity to pitch in the postseason as the Astros were swept by the Detroit Tigers. Overall, Kikuchi finished the season with a 4.05 ERA and a 3.46 FIP in 175.2 innings pitched, along with a 28 K% and a 6 BB%.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
8 Ks IN A ROW. 
Yusei Kikuchi has tied a franchise record. <a href="https://t.co/V51X65lV0i">pic.twitter.com/V51X65lV0i</a>
&mdash; Houston Astros (@astros) <a href="https://twitter.com/astros/status/1819549241330602101?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Before signing his contract with the Blue Jays, it was clear that Kikuchi always had the potential. For his career, he has a 4.57 ERA and a 4.53 FIP in 809.2 innings pitched, along with a 24.1 K% and an 8.1 BB%. Since the start of the 2023 season, the lefty has a 3.96 ERA and a 3.78 FIP in 343.1 innings pitched, along with a 26.9 K% and a 6.4 BB%.
<h2>Yusei Kikuchi’s contract outlook</h2>
According to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5863532/2024/10/31/mlb-free-agents-2024-contract-team-predictions-soto/">The Athletic’s Jim Bowden</a>, Kikuchi is projected to earn a three-year, $42 million deal while linking the Astros, Baltimore Orioles, Detroit Tigers, and Minnesota Twins to the left-handed pitcher.
<a href="https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/player/market-value/_/id/28282/yusei-kikuchi">Spotrac projects a similar deal for Kikuchi</a>, as he has a market value of $14.9 million, with comparable contracts to José Quintana, Sean Manaea, and Michael Wacha’s contract (the first two are also free agents funnily enough).
It seems as if Kikuchi’s next deal will be a short-term one with a similar dollar amount that he had on his previous three-year deal.
<h2>Is Yusei Kikuchi a fit for the Blue Jays</h2>
The Blue Jays rotation is pretty much set in stone, featuring Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt, José Berríos, Bowden Francis, and Yariel Rodríguez. However, all five of those pitchers are right-handed pitchers, so adding a left-handed pitcher into the mix isn’t a bad idea.
Around the trade deadline, Blue Jays manager John Schneider noted that he’d be interested in Kikuchi returning and believes the interest is mutual, according to Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
It&#39;s rare, but teams occasionally re-sign players they trade away (Aroldis, NYY). Presuming the Blue Jays trade Yusei Kikuchi this wk, the door would be open to a return.
&quot;Absolutely, I would love to have him,&quot; manager John Schneider said. &quot;I think that the interest is mutual.&quot;
&mdash; Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) <a href="https://twitter.com/bnicholsonsmith/status/1816933356006965429?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 26, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&nbsp;
Trading Kikuchi for a good package and re-signing him in a season you’d like to contend in would be the ultimate heist. Sure, it doesn’t quite make sense with the emergence of Bowden Francis unless the Jays trade one of the starters, but it’s certainly a possibility.
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As always, you can follow me on Twitter @Ryley_L_D.

Wouldn’t it be funny if the Toronto Blue Jays re-signed Yusei Kikuchi?



The Blue Jays signed Kikuchi before the beginning of the 2022 season. After a dismal first season that saw him pitch out of the bullpen for the final month and a half of the season, the left-handed pitcher had a great 2023 with the team. 

After parts of three seasons with the Blue Jays, Kikuchi was traded to the Houston Astros before the 2024 trade deadline for MLB-ready prospects Will Wagner, Joey Loperfido, and Jake Bloss. All three prospects have a legitimate chance of being impact players for the Jays in the future, but the trade was a win-win for both teams.

Let’s take a look at Yusei Kikuchi in the latest Free Agency Profile.
<h2>Yusei Kikuchi’s stats</h2>
Kikuchi had a strong start to his season with the Jays, but finished his 2024 season with the Jays with a 4.75 ERA and a 3.66 FIP in 115.2 innings pitched, along with a 26.2 K% and a 6 BB%. While the ERA was rough, there was certainly an intriguing pitcher in Kikuchi, and the Houston Astros paid a premium.

Without question, the package the Blue Jays got for Kikuchi was a good one. However, Kikuchi was terrific for the Astros, as he finished the season with a 2.70 ERA and a 3.07 FIP in 60 innings pitched, along with a 31.8 K% and a 5.9 BB%. Sadly, he didn’t get an opportunity to pitch in the postseason as the Astros were swept by the Detroit Tigers. Overall, Kikuchi finished the season with a 4.05 ERA and a 3.46 FIP in 175.2 innings pitched, along with a 28 K% and a 6 BB%.

https://twitter.com/astros/status/1819549241330602101

Before signing his contract with the Blue Jays, it was clear that Kikuchi always had the potential. For his career, he has a 4.57 ERA and a 4.53 FIP in 809.2 innings pitched, along with a 24.1 K% and an 8.1 BB%. Since the start of the 2023 season, the lefty has a 3.96 ERA and a 3.78 FIP in 343.1 innings pitched, along with a 26.9 K% and a 6.4 BB%.
<h2>Yusei Kikuchi’s contract outlook</h2>
According to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5863532/2024/10/31/mlb-free-agents-2024-contract-team-predictions-soto/">The Athletic’s Jim Bowden</a>, Kikuchi is projected to earn a three-year, $42 million deal while linking the Astros, Baltimore Orioles, Detroit Tigers, and Minnesota Twins to the left-handed pitcher.

<a href="https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/player/market-value/_/id/28282/yusei-kikuchi">Spotrac projects a similar deal for Kikuchi</a>, as he has a market value of $14.9 million, with comparable contracts to José Quintana, Sean Manaea, and Michael Wacha’s contract (the first two are also free agents funnily enough).

It seems as if Kikuchi’s next deal will be a short-term one with a similar dollar amount that he had on his previous three-year deal.
<h2>Is Yusei Kikuchi a fit for the Blue Jays</h2>
The Blue Jays rotation is pretty much set in stone, featuring Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt, José Berríos, Bowden Francis, and Yariel Rodríguez. However, all five of those pitchers are right-handed pitchers, so adding a left-handed pitcher into the mix isn’t a bad idea.

Around the trade deadline, Blue Jays manager John Schneider noted that he’d be interested in Kikuchi returning and believes the interest is mutual, according to Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith.

https://twitter.com/bnicholsonsmith/status/1816933356006965429

&nbsp;

Trading Kikuchi for a good package and re-signing him in a season you’d like to contend in would be the ultimate heist. Sure, it doesn’t quite make sense with the emergence of Bowden Francis unless the Jays trade one of the starters, but it’s certainly a possibility.

<hr />

As always, you can follow me on Twitter @Ryley_L_D.

Free Agent Profile: Without a left-handed pitcher in the rotation, a reunion with Yusei Kikuchi makes sense for the Blue Jays

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