Japanese southpaw Yusei Kikuchi said he was as relaxed as can be Tuesday when he struck out nine batters while allowing a run over six innings and earned his first win as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the New York Yankees 5-4.
Kikuchi (1-1), pitching in his sixth Major League Baseball season, allowed four hits and a walk at Rogers Centre, where the hosts overcame a 1-0 second-inning deficit against their American League East rivals.
"I was relaxed," Kikuchi said. "It wasn't like I was trying to force a result with this or that pitch. It felt that, because I was relaxed, the velocity was just there."
"It's quite hard not to rely on trying to throw hard, but I was able to loosen up and pitch."
The Yankees hitters struck out in order in the first but scored on two singles and a walk in the second. The Blue Jays tied it on Justin Turner's sacrifice fly in the third and took the lead for good in the fourth on Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s two-out, two-run single.
Carlos Rodon (1-1) started for the Yankees and allowed three runs over four innings. Kikuchi left with a 5-1 lead, having thrown 94 pitches, but the Yankees managed three runs against the Blue Jays' bullpen to make it close.
Kikuchi's nine strikeouts matched his season high, set six days earlier, when he allowed a run over six innings against his first MLB club, the Seattle Mariners, but did not figure in the decision.
"I felt really good today starting from when I was throwing in the bullpen," Kikuchi said. "Because of some good adjustments, I went to the mound, having had a good grasp of things since my last start."
