ANAHEIM — Yusei Kikuchi reached a point at which he felt he needed more than he could get from the Angels’ pitching coaches or catchers.
He talked to the team’s hitters and hitting coaches.
“Obviously, it’s been a little while since I hit, and I was never really a good hitter myself, so it’s good to get information from hitters on what their thought process is when they’re in the box,” Kikuchi said through his interpreter. “I want to get their opinion as to how they would approach me potentially.”
Kikuchi, who starts again on Wednesday, reached this inflection point after a frustrating outing on Friday against the A’s. He needed 94 pitches to get through four innings, which was mostly because the A’s fouled off about twice as many pitches as the major league average.
“It’s annoying,” catcher Travis d’Arnaud said. “That’s when the swing-and-miss thought has to kind of go out the window. It’s almost better to pitch to weak contact or just challenge people. Throw the ball in different spots to get weak contact.”
When the Angels signed Kikuchi, 34, to a three-year, $63 million contract last winter, one of the appeals was that he added some swing-and-miss to a staff of other pitchers who didn’t get strikeouts.
It hasn’t quite worked as planned.
Kikuchi’s strikeout rate has declined from 32% last year to 24%, while his walk rate increased from 6% to 10%. That’s added up to a frustrating inefficiency. Kikuchi ranks third in the majors in total pitches (2,511), but he’s 24th in innings (143).
Kikuchi has only finished the sixth inning once in his last nine starts. Over the last four starts, Kikuchi has averaged 101 pitches per game but that has only gotten him through five innings per start.
He said his extra work since his last start has been focused on talking to hitters and analyzing his pitch patterns.
“I can’t create another pitch,” Kikuchi said. “I’m just going to continue to use all my pitches in the arsenal and make sure I’m locating them. I think making an adjustment in pitch usage might go a long way. … I was just becoming a little more predictable. So we’ll make an adjustment with the usage, and I think it will pay dividends.”
D’Arnaud, who has caught 21 of his 26 starts, said Kikuchi’s stuff has been good all season. The overall effectiveness, as measured by his 3.52 ERA, has been in line with expectations.
The work in between starts has been focused on pitch strategy.
“It’s a good thing,” d’Arnaud said. “He’s continuing to learn, regardless of how many years he has in, even this late in the season. To do that and still want to learn kind of speaks to the person that he is.”
If Kikuchi can be more efficient it would not only save the bullpen, but lead to “a better pace of play,” interim manager Ray Montgomery said. “It keeps (defenders) engaged, and it’s a better flow.”
“Obviously, when he’s efficient, he’s as talented as anyone in the league,” Montgomery said. “We’ve seen that too. I think sometimes it gets away from you. It’s later in the year. There are a lot of reasons as to why. I’m glad he’s open to that and understands the importance of it. That’s why he is who he is and why he’s been in the league for as long as he’s been.”
STEPHENSON UPDATE
Right-hander Robert Stephenson, who was in the Angels’ clubhouse on his way out to pitch at Inland Empire on Tuesday, said he felt better than he has in 2½ months when he pitched a perfect inning on Sunday at Triple-A. Stephenson said his fastball was up to 97 mph and both the slider and splitter felt good.
“I was really happy with how everything was coming out,” he said.
The test for Stephenson on Tuesday was to see how he felt when pitching on just one day of rest, which is more typical of how he’d be used in the majors. After Tuesday’s game the Angels will determine when and if he pitches again in the minors.
Stephenson has been out since late May because of bicep inflammation. Before that he missed 13 months rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.
NOTES
Jorge Soler briefly played catch on Tuesday afternoon, the first time he’d done any baseball activity in the month he’s been on the injured list with back stiffness. Soler did not hit. …
Right-hander Trey Gregory-Alford was named the California League Pitcher of the Week after tossing five scoreless, hitless innings in his last start for Inland Empire. Gregory-Alford, 19, has allowed one run in 12 innings in his first three starts at Inland Empire after being promoted from the Arizona Complex League.
UP NEXT
Reds (RHP Nick Martinez, 10-9, 4.73 ERA) at Angels (LHP Yusei Kikuchi, 6-8, 3.52 ERA), Wednesday, 6:38 p.m., FDSN West, 830 AM