Yamaguchi was released by the Giants on Thursday and will return to his home country of Japan to pitch in NPB, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.
The veteran failed to impress in his debut MLB season with the Blue Jays last year, struggling to a 8.06 ERA and a 14.2 percent walk rate in 25.2 innings of relief. He failed to break camp with the Giants this season and will opt out of his minor-league deal to head back to a league in which he had a long and successful career.
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Giants' Shun Yamaguchi: Denied Opening Day roster spot
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The Giants reassigned Yamaguchi on Sunday, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.
Yamaguchi is expected to slot into the Triple-A Sacramento rotation to begin the season, but he could get a look at the big-league level if the Giants require a spot starter or mop-up man out of the bullpen. The 33-year-old worked exclusively in long relief for Toronto in 2020, posting an 8.06 ERA and 1.75 WHIP in 25.2 innings.
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Giants' Shun Yamaguchi: Signs with Giants
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Yamaguchi signed a split contract with the Giants on Saturday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Yamaguchi was let go by the Blue Jays last week, but he landed a new deal with the Giants. The right-hander will attempt to prove himself with his new club after a rough MLB debut in 2020. After coming over from Japan last year, Yamaguchi posted an 8.06 ERA and 1.75 WHIP over 25.2 innings across 17 relief appearances with Toronto.
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Shun Yamaguchi: Let go by Blue Jays
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Yamaguchi was released by the Blue Jays on Saturday, Scott Mitchell of TSN.ca reports.
The 33-year-old came over from Japan on a two-year, $6.35 million deal last offseason, so the Blue Jays will need to eat over $3 million in order to cut him. Yamaguchi was a disaster in his first taste of the big leagues with a 8.06 ERA, 1.75 WHIP and 26:17 K:BB over 25.2 innings last year.
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Blue Jays' Shun Yamaguchi: Scrubbed from 40-man roster
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The Blue Jays designated Yamaguchi for assignment Thursday, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.
Toronto lured Yamaguchi from Japan last offseason on a two-year, $6.35 million deal, hoping that he would contend for a spot at the back end of the rotation. A poor spring training effectively took him out of the running for a starting role, however, and he didn't find any success out of the bullpen once the season began last summer, posting an 8.06 ERA and 1.75 WHIP in 25.2 innings. Toronto will now cast him off the 40-man roster to make room for waiver pickup Joel Payamps, whom the Jays claimed from the Red Sox on Wednesday.
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Blue Jays' Shun Yamaguchi: Excluded from wild-card roster
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Yamaguchi will not be a part of the Blue Jays' wild-card roster.
Yamaguchi struggled significantly in his first season stateside, posting an 8.06 ERA and a 1.75 WHIP in 25.2 innings of relief. His 14.2 percent walk rate appeared to be his biggest problem. He could join the roster in the future if another pitcher gets injured, but there's no guarantee he'll be the top replacement.
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Blue Jays' Shun Yamaguchi: Likely bulk reliever Tuesday
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Yamaguchi is expected to work as a primary pitcher in Tuesday's game against the Marlins in Miami, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Toronto patched one of the holes in its rotation when it acquired Taijuan Walker on Thursday, but the team still appears to be leaning toward bullpen days when the fifth starter's turn comes up. Assuming he isn't needed in relief Monday against the Orioles, Yamaguchi lines up as the logical option to handle the bulk of the innings Tuesday behind an opener, most likely Julian Merryweather. Yamaguchi shined in long relief in his last appearance Aug. 26 against Boston, giving up a run over four innings en route to claiming his first big-league win.
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Blue Jays' Shun Yamaguchi: Picks up first career win
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Yamaguchi (1-2) allowed one run on two hits (one home run) and two walks while striking out two across four innings of work as he earned the win over the Red Sox on Wednesday.
Yamaguchi entered the game to begin the third after Julian Merryweather hurled two innings of scoreless work. The right-hander gave up a solo home run to Mitch Moreland in the fourth but otherwise faced very little pressure by the Red Sox hitters. The tandem of Merryweather and Yamaguchi proved to be effective Wednesday and it wouldn't be a surprise if manager Charlie Montoyo opted to roll with them again for at least another turn with the Blue Jays down three regulars in the starting rotation.
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Blue Jays' Shun Yamaguchi: Shines in long relief
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Yamaguchi tossed 2.2 scoreless innings out of the bullpen Thursday in the Blue Jays' 9-8 win over the Phillies in the second half of a doubleheader. He allowed no hits and two walks and struck out four.
With starter Trent Thornton recording just two outs in the contest before exiting, the Blue Jays were forced to treat the second half of the doubleheader as a bullpen game. Three relievers covered at least an inning behind Thornton, and none were better than Yamaguchi, who tossed a season-high 54 pitches. The NPB veteran was expected to vie for a rotation spot after inking a two-year deal with Toronto over the winter, but the Blue Jays' ample starting depth prompted the team to shift him to the bullpen in spring training. He was roughed up in his first two MLB appearances, but Yamaguchi has looked sharp over his last five outings, giving up one run in 7.2 innings and striking out 10.
Blue Jays' Shun Yamaguchi: Appears destined for bullpen
Rotowire
Yamaguchi is expected to fill a relief role for the Blue Jays to begin the season, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Yamaguchi's past success in Japan as both a starter and reliever was a big selling point when he was posted this winter, but for now, Toronto looks committed to using him out of the bullpen. Though Chase Anderson (oblique) is on track to open the season on the injured list, Yamaguchi doesn't appear to be garnering any consideration for replacing him in the rotation on the heels of a rough spring training, as Davidi names Anthony Kay, Ryan Borucki and Nate Pearson as the most likely fill-in candidates. Instead, look for the Blue Jays to use Yamaguchi mostly in lower-leverage spots initially as he continues to get acclimated to the North American game.
Yamaguchi allowed one run over three innings while striking out three in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.
The Japanese import's second spring outing went much better than his first, as Yamaguchi was able to locate his fastball effectively and set up hitters for his splitter. The 32-year-old remains in a battle with Trent Thornton and others for the No. 5 spot in the Jays' rotation.
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Blue Jays' Shun Yamaguchi: Still adjusting to MLB routine
Rotowire
Yamaguchi struggled in his first spring action Monday, giving up three hits, a walk and a HBP among the seven batters he faced, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet reports.
The 32-year-old came over from Japan in the offseason and is still adjusting to his new environment. Yamaguchi would have had two more weeks of spring training under his belt at this point in the NPB, and he's also getting used to a new ball -- MLB's is slightly larger but with lower seams. He's still in the running for the No. 5 starter role to begin the season, but it's more likely he begins the year in the bullpen, with Trent Thornton currently considered the favorite for the final rotation spot.
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