ANAHEIM -- The Angels have been the most aggressive club in free agency this offseason, and they kept it up on Monday with their first big splash, agreeing to a three-year, $63 million deal with left-hander Yusei Kikuchi. The deal, formally announced on Wednesday, is the Angels¡¯ largest since Perry Minasian became general manager in 2020.

Kikuchi is a solid upgrade to the rotation after the Angels also signed right-hander Kyle Hendricks to a one-year deal worth $2.5 million. Kikuchi immediately becomes an ace for the club and can help the Angels compete after their 99-loss campaign in 2024.

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The 33-year-old Kikuchi is coming off an intriguing season in which he put together one of the finest stretches of his Major League career following a midseason trade to the Astros.

¡°He obviously had a strong finish with Houston after the trade, but we really like what we saw before that, too,¡± general manager Perry Minasian said. ¡°When you look at his underlying numbers -- the strikeouts, the walks -- that was a quality year overall. And for our rotation, we wanted guys who attack the strike zone. And durability is very, very important. And we wanted some swing and miss. So he fits all those things -- and his makeup, obviously.¡±

Kikuchi, who began his professional career with eight seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball, spent his first three Major League seasons with the Mariners before signing a three-year, $36 million contract with the Blue Jays ahead of the 2022 season. Between Seattle and Toronto, he pitched to a 4.72 ERA with a 1.38 WHIP.

As with many previous Astros acquisitions, Kikuchi improved dramatically after his July 29 trade, making 10 starts down the stretch and posting a 2.70 ERA with a 0.93 WHIP and 76 strikeouts in 60 innings.

Among the changes the Astros made to the veteran¡¯s repertoire was a stronger reliance on his slider. By September, he was throwing 38.9% sliders compared to just 36.6% four-seam fastballs, increasing the effectiveness of both pitches. His fastball also averaged a career-best 95.5 mph.

¡°There were some pitch-mix things, and his use of the slider, obviously, was increased in Houston,¡± Minasian said. ¡°His effectiveness with his fastball, especially up in the zone and his ability to get ahead of hitters, was top five in baseball in the second half of the season. The combination of pitchability, stuff, left-handed power arm, swing and miss is really attractive and something we needed.¡±

Kikuchi joins a rotation that includes lefty Tyler Anderson and right-handers Jos¨¦ Soriano, Jack Kochanowicz and Hendricks. Other options include internal candidates Reid Detmers, Chase Silseth, Caden Dana and Sam Aldegheri.

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It has been a busy offseason for the Angels, who also traded for slugger Jorge Soler and signed free agent catcher Travis d¡¯Arnaud, utilityman Kevin Newman and Hendricks to bolster their depth. They also traded for infielder Scott Kingery and claimed infielder/outfielder Ryan Noda on waivers.

Kikuchi¡¯s signing is the largest for the club since it signed reliever Raisel Iglesias to a four-year, $58 million deal before the 2022 season. But Minasian said the Angels are not done and could even add to the rotation.

¡°We'd love to add more, so we're not close-minded,¡± Minasian said. ¡°We're going to keep following the trade market, following the free agent market and see where it goes. But the rotation is still a spot that if we feel like there's an improvement out there, we'll look to do it. There's plenty of areas to improve, and we'd also love the lengthen the lineup.¡±

Kikuchi is the club¡¯s first Japanese player since the departure of Shohei Ohtani to the Dodgers last offseason. The Angels still retain a large Japanese fan base because of Ohtani¡¯s six years with the club. Kikuchi attended the same high school as Ohtani, Hanamaki Higashi in Iwate, but is three years older.

¡°There¡¯s great talent in Japan,¡± Minasian said. ¡°I've seen that league over the last 15-20 years, and it¡¯s not a surprise the success they¡¯ve been having over here.¡±