Kikuchi's Shoulder Tightness: Angels' Struggles Continue

0:00It's April 29th. I'm Corey with The Story. This is MLB News today, driven by AI and Bill for baseball fans. Angel Starter. Yusei Kakuchi had to leave his outing against the white socks with left shoulder tightness. It happened right after a warm-up pitch before the third inning on Wednesday. He had tossed two scoreless frames, giving up just two hits and one walk. The 34-year-old was pulled by manager Kurt Suzuki and the training staff, with lefty Mitch Ferris stepping in to replace him. Kakuchi has been tweaking his delivery lately, dropping his arm angle after trying a higher slot earlier this season. This year, he's posted a rough 5.81 ERA over 31 innings, with 33 strikeouts and 14 walks. That's a far cry from his all-star form last season. Back then, he put up a solid 3.99 ERA, fanning 174 and 178 in the third innings. He signed a 3-year, $63 million deal with the Angels before that breakout year.

1:00Anytime miss from Kakuchi hits hard for the Angels, who've dropped nine of their last 10 games heading into that series finale, keep an eye on updates as they fight to turn things around.