Yusei Kikuchi says he’s ready to come back. The Angels are not ready to say yes.
That’s the tension hanging over Anaheim after Kikuchi wrapped up his rehab work and made it clear he wants back in the big leagues. The left-hander, who has been working back from left shoulder issues that surfaced in the spring, told reporters he’s prepared to rejoin the club as it heads to Houston for a three-game series starting tomorrow night.
“I'm ready to come back to The Show,” Kikuchi said through interpreter Koki Goto. “My luggage is already packed, so I'm ready to go.”
The problem is the final rehab outing didn’t exactly make the decision easy. In his latest start, Kikuchi was hit hard and allowed eight runs in 4-2/3 innings, a rough finish to a stretch that has left his rehab ERA at 15.63 across four appearances, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com.
That’s enough to make the Angels pause, even with Kikuchi insisting he felt good physically and accomplished what he needed to do.
“It's a rehab game, so I wanted to throw my heaters,” Kikuchi said. “They're sitting on my heaters, so I think the results weren't what I wanted, but I was able to throw 75 pitches, and I was able to achieve that. I felt satisfied from that point.”
Manager Kurt Suzuki isn’t rushing the call. He said the team has talked with Kikuchi, but for now it sounds like the lefty will keep waiting.
“We've talked to him,” Suzuki said. “He feels good obviously, we're still discussing when he will pitch, but RJ will get another turn.”
That decision matters because right-hander Ryan Johnson just gave the Angels a useful outing, allowing two runs in 5-1/3 innings yesterday while continuing his push for a rotation spot. Johnson has an ERA of 2.51 in his three starts in August so far, and the Angels would likely prefer not to interrupt that momentum.
There’s also the bigger roster puzzle. The Angels could go to a six-man rotation if they want to fit Kikuchi in, and they appear committed to keeping Grayson Rodriguez in the mix even though he has a 7.17 ERA.
Kikuchi has pointed to his fastball usage as part of the explanation for the rough rehab numbers, and he also said the absence of PitchCom devices in one game led to him tipping pitches.
Suzuki, for his part, said the team likes where Kikuchi is physically, but he also knows rehab starts and major league starts are not the same animal.
“I think a guy with his experience and how long he's been in the big leagues, I think you just want him to feel good,” Suzuki said. “When you put him in a major league game when the lights are on, it's a different story. But I think the main thing is he's feeling good, he's been strong, and all those things that you want him to feel in a rehab start."
It leaves interim GM John Mozeliak in a tricky spot after he moved several veteran pitchers at the deadline. Kikuchi is effectively on an expiring deal now, with one more year left at $21 million for next season, and the Angels have to decide whether his readiness outweighs the caution his rehab has created.
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