Bleacher Report · Mar 12, 2022
Yusei Kikuchi, Blue Jays Reportedly Agree to 3-Year, $36M Contract
Left-handed starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi and the Toronto Blue Jays have agreed to a three-year, $36 million contract, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network and Audacy Sports.
The 30-year-old Kikuchi spent the first three seasons of his MLB career with the Seattle Mariners. He went 7-9 with a 4.41 ERA (4.61 FIP, 1.32 WHIP) and 163 strikeouts in 157 innings last year.
Before arriving in the United States, Kikuchi pitched eight seasons for Nippon Professional Baseball's Saitama Seibu Lions, going 73-46 with a 2.77 ERA.
Kikuchi rounds out a loaded Blue Jays starting rotation on paper, and that's even with losing American League Cy Young winner Robbie Ray in free agency to the M's.