"What is Mike Trout gonna give you?" - MLB insider poses biggest question for Angels in light of Yusei Kikuchi's $63,000,000 deal
Mike Trout's LA Angels made the first big splash this offseason, as they are in agreement with Japanese pitcher Yusei Kikuchi on a three-year, $63 million deal. The 33-year-old left-handed pitcher played for the Houston Astros, who had acquired him on last season's MLB trade deadline from the Seattle Mariners.
The 2021 All-Star went 9-10 with a 4.05 ERA in 32 starts this year. More importantly, his quality starts with the Astros seems to have swayed the Angels into signing him. With the Astros, he went 5-1 with a 2.70 ERA in 10 starts.
MLB Insider Russell Dorsey, on Monday's MLB Network, discussed Kikuchi's signing by the Angels while analyzing other roster concerns.
"I think it’s a solid deal for Yusei Kikuchi, a guy who really turned things around early last season with the Toronto Blue Jays before getting traded to Houston," Dorsey said.
"He’s a guy who has been able to miss bats, especially over the last year. I think that’s going to be huge for the Angels’ rotation, which has now added Kikuchi."
Following Kikuchi's signing, Dorsey shared concerns with regard to the Angels' offense, which will also need some upgrades. He especially wondered Mike Trout's potential role next season, knowing he's coming off a surgery.
"What is Mike Trout going to give you? I think that’s the big question we all want to know," Dorsey added. "Do you move him to a corner? Do you DH him? Taylor Ward is a guy who has had solid success for them over the last couple of years. So I like this move for the Angels. Now I’m just looking at how they get that offense going.
"I know they added Solaire as well as Travis d’Arnaud. So they’ve made some really interesting moves. I’m just curious to see how it all comes together."
Angels have been busy this offseason: What lies ahead?
The signing of Yusei Kikuchi has answered starting pitching concerns, with the left-hander possibly joining the Angels rotation, which has right-handers Jose Soriano and Jack Kochanowicz and Kyle Hendricks.
For the fifth spot, they might look at the market or have an internal candidate, for which, Reid Detmers, Chase Silseth, Caden Dana and Sam Aldegheri are some of the top contenders.
This offseason, the Angels acquired Jorge Soler via trade and signed catcher Travis d’Arnaud (two-year, $12 million contract), utilityman Kevin Newman (one year, $2.5 million deal) and Hendricks (one-year, $2.5 million contract). They have also traded for infielder Scott Kingery and acquired Ryan Noda off waivers.
While it doesn't seem that they have acquired big names, they are making sure to fix roster concerns. Angels owner Arte Moreno has said that they aren't going to splash big-time money but are ready to pay out to make the team competitive.