Diagnosing a failed Kikuchi relaunch

In the Arsenal Report we spend most of our words praising pitchers who have improved by changing their approach or pitch mix. This week is a little bit different, as our primary topic is a pitcher who had significant hype as a breakout candidate for 2022. Yusei Kikuchi (LHP, TOR) has made significant, sensible changes in 2022, but has gotten worse, giving us the opportunity to potentially learn from why he has struggled. 

Kikuchi breakout still delayed

Kikuchi was one of the most popular free agent starting pitching targets prior to the 2022 season despite a career 4.97 ERA heading into the season. This was largely because of the potential that Kikuchi’s stuff showed despite a lack of results and control since his fastball velocity...

Almost!

You’re just a few clicks away from accessing this feature and hundreds more throughout the year that have a singular goal in mind: Winning your league. Subscribe to BaseballHQ.com here!

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

More From Arsenal Report

Shota Imanaga's elite four-seamer, Keaton Winn's splitter and slider, and José Soriano's nasty stuff in this week's Arsenal Report.
May 10 2024 3:10am
Is Jared Jones legit? We'll break down his arsenal along with tweaks from Hunter Greene and Jordan Hicks.
FREE
Apr 12 2024 9:10am
In this week's Arsenal Report, we examine Aaron Civale's pitches, movement profiles, and plate discipline to figure out what to expect moving forward.
FREE
Dec 22 2023 3:46pm
We'll revisit Jack Flaherty's arsenal and examine Cole Ragans' late-season surge.
Aug 26 2023 12:04am

Tools