| Year | Team | W | L | ERA | GS | IP | K | BB | WHIP | K/9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | SEA | 4 | 8 | 4.41 | 26 | 157.0 | 163 | 54 | 1.27 | 9.3 |
| 2022 | TOR | 12 | 8 | 2.99 | 28 | 159.1 | 188 | 46 | 1.04 | 10.6 |
| 2023 | TOR | 13 | 8 | 3.86 | 32 | 177.0 | 196 | 57 | 1.20 | 9.9 |
| 2024 | TOR | 10 | 9 | 3.35 | 31 | 172.0 | 197 | 59 | 1.18 | 10.3 |
| 2025 | LAA | 11 | 10 | 3.30 | 31 | 178.2 | 206 | 57 | 1.14 | 10.4 |
| 2026 ST | LAA | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
The Staff Ace. Everything Runs Through Him.
When the Angels signed Yusei Kikuchi to a three-year deal ahead of the 2025 season, the ask was simple: be the ace this organization has never had. He was. A 3.30 ERA over 178.2 innings, 206 strikeouts, a 1.14 WHIP — those are legitimate top-of-rotation numbers. On a playoff team, Kikuchi is a solid number two. On the Angels, he is the entire plan.
That distinction matters because it creates a fragility the rest of the rotation cannot absorb. Every start Kikuchi makes healthy is a stabilizing force. Every start he misses is a five-alarm fire, because what comes after him — a rotation built on recovering arms and question marks — is not capable of covering the gap.
The strikeout numbers are what give the most confidence. Over 206 K in a season means a pitcher is missing bats, not just getting weak contact — and Kikuchi has done it with a four-pitch mix that plays in both halves of the season. The sweeper he developed in Toronto has become his best swing-and-miss pitch. When it's on, opposing hitters look genuinely foolish.
The Angels need him to give them 170+ innings in 2026. That is the baseline. Anything above it is a gift. Anything below it starts conversations about whether this team can even stay in contention through July, let alone reach the postseason for the first time since 2014.