'Emotional' Kikuchi gifted walk-off win in last start before Deadline

TORONTO -- Perhaps for the last time, Yusei Kikuchi handed the ball to manager John Schneider and stepped off the mound.

Leaving what is widely expected to be his final start with the Blue Jays with the Trade Deadline just four days away, Kikuchi received a standing ovation from fans crowded behind the Blue Jays’ dugout at Rogers Centre. We couldn’t have envisioned this two years ago.

Toronto eventually walked it off for a 6-5 walk-off win over the Rangers, with Ernie Clement playing the role of hero in the bottom of the ninth before being mobbed by his teammates in shallow right field, but this night was always going to belong to Kikuchi.

Kikuchi’s first year with the Blue Jays in 2022 was a mess. His 5.19 ERA that season doesn’t fully capture the struggles, with Kikuchi so often battling his control, trudging through the first inning as he fought to keep his head above water. Eventually, he lost his spot in the rotation altogether. But he’s beloved in Toronto now, both by fans and his own teammates, because of everything that’s happened since.

“I gave up five runs today and the fans still gave me a standing ovation,” Kikuchi said through interpreter Yusuke Oshima. “It was a pretty cool moment. As I came into the dugout, Schneider, Pete [Walker, pitching coach], the other coaches and my teammates were saying thank you. In that moment, just thinking about the past three years, I got a little emotional.”

Now, it feels like the news of Kikuchi being traded is only a matter of time, especially after the Blue Jays kicked off their Trade Deadline sale on Friday by sending Yimi García to the Mariners for outfielder Jonatan Clase, now the club’s No. 7 prospect, and catcher Jacob Sharp. Pitching in the final months of his three-year, $36 million deal, Kikuchi is someone contending teams will target as a back-of-rotation starter with the upside to steal games down the stretch.

Friday’s performance raised Kikuchi’s ERA to 4.75 with five runs over 4 2/3 innings, including the shortest home run a player could possibly hit at Rogers Centre from Adolis García (328 feet), but there’s still enough for a contending team to grab onto. Unless the Blue Jays choose a more aggressive path as sellers and deal a player with control beyond this season, a Kikuchi deal may be their “other” big shot at landing an exciting prospect along with the García trade.

That said, Kikuchi has a 6.42 ERA since the beginning of June. The path isn’t as simple as it once was.

A couple of days ago, general manager Ross Atkins met with Kikuchi and told him there was a “pretty high likelihood” that he would be traded before the Deadline.

“It was a good opportunity to clear things up, and it was like a reset for me, too,” Kikuchi said. “With all of the uncertainty, it was a good conversation to have, and he had some really nice words for me, too. I’m glad we had that conversation.”

Sandwiched in the middle of this season and the 2022 Blue Jays debut Kikuchi would love to forget, he put together a fantastic campaign in '23, posting a career-best 3.86 ERA over a career-high 167 2/3 innings. He came alive with confidence, spinning out of his deliveries with a dancer’s grace. On the field and in the thousands of quieter moments around the clubhouse, Kikuchi opened up.

“Just to watch him evolve at this stage of his career has been really cool,” said Schneider. “When you put that alongside how he fits in with the city and with the team, he’s really, really well-liked in the clubhouse. He’s really funny, too, and people don’t get to see that part of him. Being around Chris [Bassitt], Kevin [Gausman] and José [Berríos] has been great for him. To reinvent yourself -- thinking back from 2022 to where he is now -- it’s night and day.”

This is what it’s all about now. Even on a night the Blue Jays walked off the Rangers, the Deadline hangs over everything. The Blue Jays will look to trade other players on expiring deals, too, including Danny Jansen, Justin Turner and Kevin Kiermaier, who announced on Wednesday that 2024 will be his last season. Kiermaier made the play of the game defensively on Friday, robbing Wyatt Langford of extra bases with a diving catch in the third.

Whenever Kikuchi’s time comes over these next four days, he, like García before him, will leave a hole in that clubhouse that’s difficult to fill.