Angels' Lone All-Star Yusei Kikuchi Provides Update After Scary Injury

Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi provided an update on the injury he sustained in the Angels' 10-5 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday.

In the top of the sixth, a line drive struck Kikuchi in the shoulder, however he went on to finish the inning after a few warm up pitches. Interim manager Ray Montgomery said the ball “hit more flesh, nothing bony,” but will still get more than a week of rest with the upcoming All-Star break.

“There’s a little bit of pain,” Kikuchi said through an interpreter, “but I don’t think it’s that big of an issue.”

Kikuchi withdrew from the AL All-Star team's active roster, as he would not be able to feature in the game on just two days of rest. Kikuchi also made the All-Star Game in 2021 with the Seattle Mariners, however he didn't pitch in that contest either.

The triviality of Kikuchi's injury will come as a relief to the Angels, who have seen the southpaw put up the best numbers of his career at the Big A. He has a career-best 3.11 ERA through an MLB-leading 20 starts, and has the most strikeouts in the Angels rotation. His ERA+ of 137 would also be the highest in his career so far.

The Angels signed Kikuchi to a three-year deal in the offseason after an electric second half of the season with the Houston Astros in 2024, where he posted a 2.70 ERA through 10 games and eclipsed the 200 strikeouts mark for the first time in his career. He finished ninth in AL Cy Young voting.

The Halos will need Kikuchi to continue to produce the outings he has so far through the second half of the season, as he has been a key piece on a young Angels team pushing for the postseason for the first time since 2014. The Angels are three games back of the Seattle Mariners in the final AL Wild Card spot, and will look to close the gap further in the rubber match against the D-Backs on Sunday at 1:07 p.m. PT.

For more Angels news, head over to Angels on SI.