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Dodger Blue > MLB News > Shohei Ohtani Hopes Yusei Kikuchi Inherits His Old Angels Locker
MLB News

Shohei Ohtani Hopes Yusei Kikuchi Inherits His Old Angels Locker

Sebastian Abdón Ibarra
December 31, 2024
3 Min Read
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The Los Angeles Angels have been busy this offseason after a dreadful 2024 in their first year without Shohei Ohtani. They posted their worst record in franchise history at 63-99 and finished behind the Oakland Athletics for last place in the American League West.

So far, the Angels have signed four players to Major League deals in free agency with the biggest being Yusei Kikuchi’s three-year, $63 million contract. Kikuchi enjoyed a nice season in 2024 as he split his time between the Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros.

His addition fills a significant need for the Angels who had the third-worst ERA for a starting rotation last season.

Ohtani and Kikuchi are both alumni of Hanamaki Higashi High School and have a friendly relationship. With the two as friends, Ohtani hopes that his old locker with the Angels is given to Kikuchi, according to Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times during an episode of “The Dodgers Debate:”

“Ohtani said that he hopes Kikuchi inherits his locker.”

In 2024, Kikuchi had one of the better seasons of his career since coming over to MLB in 2019. He set a career high in innings pitched and strikeouts with 175.2 and 206 respectively.

He found increased success following his trade to the Astros, with a 2.70 ERA in 60 innings while also drastically decreasing batting average against and WHIP.

Overall, he finished with a 4.05 ERA, 3.46 FIP and 1.20 WHIP.

Yusei Kikuchi’s history facing Shohei Ohtani

Their time shared in the American League provided plenty of opportunities for the two high school alumni to battle it out.

Ohtani and Kikuchi faced off one time in 2024 and the end result was somewhat of a draw. Ohtani had one hit in three at-bats and one RBI, while Kikuchi struck him out once.

Historically, Ohtani has had the upper hand in this matchup. He is 7-23 with 3 homers and 5 RBI in 24 at-bats against Kikuchi in his career.

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TAGGED:Los Angeles AngelsLos Angeles DodgersShohei OhtaniYusei Kikuchi
BySebastian Abdón Ibarra
Sebastian Ibarra covers the Las Vegas Raiders as a staff writer for Raiders Newswire. He previously worked as a Marketing/Communications intern for the Ontario Jr Reign, and a staff writer and two time Editor for the Campus Times at the University of La Verne. Sebastian graduated Summa Cum Laude in 2022 from ULV with a major in Communications. His love of sports stems from his baseball career starting at tee-ball and ending his senior year at Servite High School. He enjoys video games and DC comics in his spare time. Follow him on Twitter: @sebas_abdon.
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