Blue Jays' Yusei Kikuchi: Strikes out nine Wednesday

Kikuchi didn't factor into the decision Wednesday against the Mariners, allowing one run on three hits and two walks over six innings. He struck out nine.

After struggling in his first outing this year, Kikuchi's held opponents to just one run over 11.1 innings while striking out 16 in his subsequent two starts. However, the southpaw was stuck with another no-decision Wednesday, as the Blue Jays couldn't crack Logan Gilbert in an eventual extra-innings loss. Overall, Kikuchi is 0-1 with a 2.30 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 20:7 K:BB through his first 15.3 innings. He'll look for his first win in his next outing, tentatively scheduled for early next week on the road against the Yankees.