Austin Hays vs Yusei Kikuchi

The Almanac's Take

Hays gets the platoon edge here as a right-handed bat against Kikuchi's left arm, and that's the real story — Kikuchi has been genuinely rough this year, carrying a 5.81 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, and 4.1 BB/9 through seven starts. Hays's own season line is thin (.231/.250/.308 in just 40 PA), with a 32.5% strikeout rate that's a real concern against Kikuchi's 9.6 K/9. The 28 career plate appearances between them are too small to lean on — a .222 average with 7 strikeouts is texture, not signal. The platoon edge against a shaky left-hander is the cleanest thread here, however modest Hays's current form looks.

Career head-to-head

AVG

.222

6-for-27

PA

28

HR

1

K

7

BB

1

Pitches seen

104

Avg exit velo

89.1 mph

Career meetings in the Statcast era (2015–present). Even a clear edge over a handful of plate appearances is a small sample — read it as color, not a projection.

Pitch mix to the batter

Plate-appearance log

• 2026-04-29Single · Slider 87.6 mph · 93.2 mph EV
• 2025-08-20Field Out · Curveball 80.9 mph · 80.2 mph EV
• 2025-08-20Field Out · Slider 82.2 mph · 87.8 mph EV
• 2025-08-20Single · Slider 84.1 mph · 102.8 mph EV
• 2024-06-06Strikeout · Changeup 88.7 mph
• 2024-06-06Strikeout · Changeup 88.7 mph
• 2023-08-22Walk · 4-Seam Fastball 96.9 mph
• 2023-08-22Field Out · Curveball 84.0 mph · 89.4 mph EV
• 2023-08-22Double · Slider 88.8 mph · 101.3 mph EV
• 2023-08-02Single · Curveball 81.3 mph · 77.0 mph EV
• 2023-08-02Field Out · Curveball 83.3 mph · 82.8 mph EV
• 2023-08-02Field Out · Curveball 83.5 mph · 96.9 mph EV
• 2023-06-15Strikeout · Slider 89.4 mph
• 2023-06-15Field Out · 4-Seam Fastball 96.8 mph · 84.2 mph EV
• 2023-06-15Field Out · 4-Seam Fastball 94.8 mph · 72.1 mph EV
• 2023-05-19Field Out · Slider 90.0 mph · 102.2 mph EV
• 2023-05-19Field Out · Slider 92.7 mph · 74.5 mph EV
• 2022-09-16Strikeout · 4-Seam Fastball 95.7 mph
• 2022-08-15Strikeout · Slider 84.7 mph
• 2022-08-15Field Out · 4-Seam Fastball 95.0 mph · 104.8 mph EV
• 2022-08-08Single · 4-Seam Fastball 94.0 mph · 77.0 mph EV
• 2022-08-08Strikeout · Changeup 87.7 mph
• 2022-06-14Home Run · Changeup 84.5 mph · 102.4 mph EV
• 2022-06-14Strikeout · Changeup 85.0 mph
• 2022-06-14Field Out · 4-Seam Fastball 95.1 mph · 101.0 mph EV
• 2021-05-05Field Out · Cutter 91.8 mph · 89.6 mph EV
• 2021-05-05Field Out · Changeup 85.9 mph · 86.4 mph EV
• 2021-05-05Field Out · Slider 83.6 mph · 76.8 mph EV