It appears Japanese left-handed pitcher Yusei Kikuchi is coming to the West Coast, but he won't be joining the Giants or A's.
According to multiple national reports, the 27-year-old agreed to a deal with an A's rival -- the Seattle Mariners -- late Monday night.
Happy New Year, Seattle: The Mariners appear to be nearing an agreement with Japanese lefty Yusei Kikuchi, major league sources tell @JeffPassan and me. The 27-year-old Kikuchi must sign before the Jan. 2 posting deadline.— Tim Brown (@TBrownYahoo) January 1, 2019
Yusei Kikuchi has agreed to a 4-year guarantee with #Mariners, source says. @MLBNetwork @MLB— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) January 1, 2019
Kikuchi has an unusual deal. Has initial 4 year guarantee (3 years plus 2022 player option) but 4th year player option can be replaced by an additional 4 year guarantee for a total of 7 years by the #Mariners— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 1, 2019
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Kikuchi has a deadline of Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019 to sign a deal.
The Giants had expressed interest in Kikuchi, and scouted him extensively, according to president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi.
In eight seasons spent with the Seibu Lions of the Japan Pacific League and the Melbourne Aces of the Australian Baseball League, Kikuchi appeared in 163 games and posted a 2.81 ERA. He struck out 925 batters in 1,035.1 innings.
In case you're wondering what the Giants missed out on and what the A's will be facing, here's a scouting report provided to NBC Sports Bay Area by Sung Min Kim of The Athletic on Dec. 11, 2018.
"He's a lefty who throws 92-95 mph and has touched 98. His slider is a sure major league pitch, and he can get a lot of strikeouts. He also throws a change and curve."
The A's will likely face Kikuchi multiple times in 2019, so they'll see up close how he adjusts to big league hitters.
