Most important Angels for 2025 MLB season: Yusei Kikuchi

It's been quite some time since the Los Angeles Angels were pleased with their starting pitching. Since 2016, Angels starters finished in the top-10 in ERA once (2022). In that stretch of nine seasons, only four starting pitchers made 30 starts in a single campaign. One of them, Tyler Anderson in 2024, posted an ERA below four.

The Angels hope that Yusei Kikuchi can change that. Signed as a free agent this offseason to a three-year, $63 million deal, Kikuchi is expected to lead Los Angeles' rotation. There wasn’t much debate as to who would be the Opening Day starter, with Kikuchi getting the nod, the first of his MLB career.

The 33-year-old was one of the best starters in the league during the second half last year. He won five of his 10 starts with the Houston Astros after being traded in late-July, posting a 2.70 ERA with 11.4 strikeouts per nine innings. The Angels believe he can continue to be dominant.

New pitch gives Yusei Kikuchi more versatility, confidence

Over the past few seasons, the sweeper pitch has become a phenomenon among pitchers. While it's mainly used by relievers, several starters have incorporated it into their mix. Sonny Gray and Paul Skenes are starting pitchers who've had significant success with a sweeper. Kikuchi decided to give it a whirl and it's helped him in more ways than one this spring.

Similar to a slider, which Kikuchi throws well, the sweeper has more horizontal movement and is a touch slower than a traditional slider. Implementing the new pitch has allowed him to throw the slider more confidently. He didn’t necessarily need to add a sweeper to do that given opponents hit .207 with a .276 slugging percentage off his slider last year, but it gives Kikuchi a new option to keep hitters guessing. He sees it as a pitch he'll use selectively. However, it could become a more common choice if it keeps fooling hitters.

“It’s a pitch I can keep in my back pocket kind of thing,” Kikuchi said, per MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger. “Just pick and choose different spots to use it. I wouldn't say, like, play around with it, but just making sure I know when to use it.”

Kikuchi threw only three sweepers in his last spring training start on March 21. All three were thrown for strikes. He struck out five, two off of sliders, across five brilliant innings. Of his 206 strikeouts last season, 31% were with a slider. Don't be surprised if that percentage increases in 2025 thanks in part to a new weapon.

Have the Angels found the ace they've been searching for?

It's hard to take too much stock into spring training, but Kikuchi has looked every bit the part of an ace throughout his first camp with the Angels. After getting roughed up by the Los Angeles Dodgers in his debut, Kikuchi allowed two combined runs in his next two starts. He delivered 13 strikeouts in those outings and increased his pitch count to 88 in his final tune up.

Kikuchi's overall track record in the MLB isn’t Hall of Fame worthy, but he's pitched much better over the past two seasons. The seventh-year veteran recorded a 5.02 ERA with a 2.37 strikeout to walk ratio across his first four MLB seasons, winning 21 games. In 2023 and 2024, he logged a 3.96 ERA with 20 wins and a 4.21 strikeout to walk ratio. Perhaps most importantly, he's stayed healthy with 32 starts each season.

Kikuchi has ticked the boxes he felt were needed to be prepared for Opening Day. Now it's time to show he can do it throughout an entire season. Anything higher than his ninth-place finish in American League Cy Young Award voting last season would be a significant win for the Angels. That might not be out of the realm of possibility.

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