Mariners' Yusei Kikuchi: Misses plenty of bats

Kikuchi allowed an earned run on two hits and a walk over 3.1 innings in a Cactus League win over the Brewers on Sunday. He struck out six.

Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports Kikuchi's velocity ticked as high as 97 mph and he was able to utilize his cutter with more conviction. Kikuchi also stretched out all the way to 66 pitches, and although he's allowed an earned run in each of his first three spring starts, his Cactus League ERA sits at a solid 3.24 and he's held opposing hitters to a cumulative .179 average across 8.1 innings.