KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Angels fans who had regained some faith in Yusei Kikuchi after last weekend’s encouraging start could only watch with frustration as all of that was wiped away in one disturbing inning.
Kikuchi gave up five runs in the fourth inning of the Angels’ 6-3 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Friday night.
Kikuchi didn’t even give up a hit in any of his other four innings, but the damage had been done. His ERA now sits at 6.21 after six starts.
While the Angels’ young starters, led by José Soriano, are giving them hope, the 34-year-old Kikuchi has not lived up to his $21 million annual salary.
On Saturday, Kikuchi pitched six scoreless innings against the Padres, later explaining that he had lowered his arm angle after experimenting with a higher release point in his first four starts. Besides being more effective, he also had slightly higher velocity in that game.
Kikuchi followed that performance by showing the same improvements in the first three innings of Friday’s game. He retired nine of 10 batters, working around one walk.
Then it all fell apart.
In the fourth, Kikuchi got ahead of Royals start shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., but then he fouled off three two-strike pitches before punching a double into the gap in left center.
Witt ended up scoring on a weird play. Right fielder Jo Adell got a late break on a blooper and he couldn’t make the catch, but the Angels still got a force at second on the play because Starling Marte was staying close to bag in case Adell caught it.
Still, that was the second out, and Kikuchi was one pitch from escaping the inning with minimal damage.
Instead, he gave up four straight hits to the bottom four hitters of the Kansas City order, driving in four more runs to blow the game open.
The Angels (12-15) at least made it interesting after that, thanks to the production from the bottom of the order.
Vaughn Grissom (two doubles), Logan O’Hoppe (a single and a walk) and Bryce Teodosio (two singles) each had good nights, and all three of them reached base in a two-out rally in the seventh.
Zach Neto blooped a single into center to drive in one, and then Mike Trout walked to push home another. Adell drove in the third with a grounder.
A Jorge Soler loaded the bases, putting the tying run in scoring position.
Manager Kurt Suzuki then sent Yoan Moncada up to pinch-hit for Oswald Peraza, even though the Royals had left-hander Daniel Lynch IV ready in the bullpen. Moncada was 1 for 18 with 10 strikeouts on the season against lefties.
The Royals brought in Lynch, and Moncada struck out.
More to come on this story.