Have you heard of Yusei Kikuchi? If you haven’t heard of Kikuchi, you’re missing out on the continuing trend of Japanese pitchers leaving their home country for the States and the MLB. Kikuchi is a hard throwing left hander who reaches up to 96mph with his fastball with a dramatic change in speed to a 75mph 12-6 Curve. Did I mention Kikuchi is only 18?
This is quickly becoming and intriguing story, as it is believed that he may skip the Japanese draft altogether in order to play in the MLB. Kikuchi is a quality arm but not Major League ready. If he were to be drafted by a Japanese club it’s believed he’d enter their version of the minors, so its likely he’ll start out in the minors here.
Patrick Newman of the NPB tracker has the latest known schedule of Yusei Kikuchi. A few dates of interest are October 16th, when he starts meeting with Japanese clubs and October 19th when he starts meeting MLB teams.
Teams such as the Indians, Yankees, Red Sox, Mets and Dodgers have been linked to him over the recent months.
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This is definitely an interesting development. With this year's Free Agent pitching crop being much slimmer then last seasons it's certainly something to pay attention to. An 18 year old lefty, throwing 96 will garner attention wherever he goes. I'll keep you guy's updated on him as more news comes around.
