Yusei Kikuchi Signs Three-Year Deal With Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays have signed Japanese left-handed pitcher Yusei Kikuchi to a three-year deal, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reported Saturday.

The deal is for a total of $36 million over the three years.

MMO’s Michael Mayer previously reported that the Mets had shown interest in Kikuchi before the lockout, as well as the recently signed Carlos Rodon. Both starting pitching options are off the board as the post-lockout action heats up.

Metsmerized covered him in a free agent profile back in November, assessing whether the Mets should go after him.

The Mets boast perhaps the best one-two punch in the game with Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer, but the rotation comes with a lot of question marks after those two. They will likely continue to scour the market and possibly look for trade options as well.

Kikuchi came over from the Saitama Seibu Lions of Nippon Professional Baseball’s Pacific League in 2019. He spent the last three seasons with the Mariners.

He struggled in his first major league season but stayed healthy, posting a 5.46 ERA over 32 starts. After striking out 47 in 47 innings over nine starts in the abbreviated 2020 season, he had his best campaign in 2021. Over 29 starts, he put up a 4.41 ERA, 9.3 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9. He was also named to his first MLB All-Star game.

On the Blue Jays, Kikuchi joins a rotation of Jose Berrios, Kevin Gausman, Hyun Jin Ryu and Alex Manoah. The Blue Jays narrowly missed the postseason last year despite a strong record of 91-71. Kikuchi’s Mariners also just missed the postseason with a 90-72 record.

The Mets now have one fewer option as they look to strengthen the back end of their rotation.