ANAHEIM -- With fireworks going off overhead in the clear night sky, Angel Stadium looked a lot like Disneyland just down the road on Saturday night. But for Yusei Kikuchi, this was far from the happiest place on Earth.

The fireworks came courtesy of a trio of home runs by the Angels -- back-to-back-to-back blasts by Tommy La Stella, Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani -- in his fourth and final inning of work in the Mariners’ 12-3 loss.

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For Kikuchi, it was the continuation of a troubling trend. Even after skipping his last start to recharge his batteries and reboot his season, the 27-year-old rookie from Japan again lasted just 3 1/3 innings, while giving up nine hits and seven runs (six earned).

Kikuchi, who signed a guaranteed four-year, $56 million free agent contract in January as one of the Mariners’ prize additions to their future plans, is now 3-4 with a 4.99 ERA in 14 starts. He’d gone 2-0 with a 1.95 ERA in five previous starts before hitting his three-game plunge, during which he’s lasted just 3 1/3 innings each outing while posting a 14.40 ERA.

In the 10 innings combined in those three starts, Kikuchi has been tagged for 29 hits, 18 runs, 16 earned runs and six homers, with six walks and just two strikeouts.

That adds up to trouble for a lefty the Mariners are counting on to be a key rotation piece going forward. Seattle fell to 27-41 with the loss and 14-39 since its 13-2 start, now 5 1/2 games back of the Angels for last place in the American League West.

Adding to the difficulty of the night, Kikuchi had the eyes of Japan on him even more than usual for this outing, his first Major League matchup against countrymate Ohtani. More than 80 Japanese journalists were on hand and he faced that onslaught of questioners after Ohtani went 2-for-3 with the home run against him.

“They hit three home runs off me today. I didn’t like what happened out there today, including Ohtani,” Kikuchi said through interpreter Jason Novak. “I want to make sure next time I go out there and face the Angels that I make sure I shut them down and do well for the team.”

Kikuchi’s fastball checked in at 92-94 mph, similar to what he’s thrown all season, but the Angels have seen him three times now and appear to have his number, as he has a 12.35 ERA with 29 hits allowed in 11 2/3 innings against the Halos.

The three home runs came on just four pitches, all poorly located, to open the fourth while trailing just 3-2 at the time. La Stella jumped on a first-pitch fastball and drove it 418 feet to right field. Trout turned around a 1-0 fastball and rocketed it out to left-center with a 429 foot blast with a 110.3 mph exit velocity. And Ohtani timed up a hanging first-pitch curve and deposited it 396 feet to the opposite field.

“The homers, he just didn’t get the ball where he wanted to,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “It happens in this league. They’ve got a lot of power over there at the top of their lineup and they made him pay tonight.”

The lack of strikeouts -- just two now in his past three starts after totaling 49 in his first 11 outings -- is one sign that Kikuchi isn’t missing many bats or finishing off hitters.

“After I’ve gotten two strikes, it has been a challenge for me to put them away,” Kikuchi said. “That’s all I can say.”

Kikuchi said skipping his last start didn’t affect his performance and he felt strong physically.

“I felt really fresh,” he said. “I used that time to make some adjustments to my mechanics and watched some video. It didn’t play well, but I felt good today.”

The Mariners did get home runs from Edwin Encarnacion and Kyle Seager. Encarnacion moved into a tie for second in the AL with 18 homers, one back of the Yankees’ Gary Sanchez. But the pitching problems were too much to overcome, as Seattle has now allowed 10 or more runs in 15 games this season and their 5.33 ERA as a team is 29th in the Majors.