Shota Imanaga Fantasy Stats

Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga was on point in Wednesday's 11-2 blowout win over the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Ballpark. Imanaga was dominant, allowing only one earned run on three hits (one homer) while walking one and striking out 11 in six innings to win his first game of the 2026 season. His 11 strikeouts matched a career-high, and he also had a head-turning 26 swinging strikes and threw 67 of his 97 pitches on the night for strikes. The only run that Imanaga allowed was on a solo shot to shortstop Trea Turner in the first inning. The 32-year-old veteran southpaw settled in from there and didn't allow much of anything else for the rest of his outing in Philly. Imanaga is now 1-1 on the year with a 2.45 ERA, 0.77 WHIP, and 31 strikeouts in his 22 innings pitched over four starts. While it will be difficult for Imanaga to repeat this outing in a rematch with the Phillies next week at Wrigley Field, fantasy managers shouldn't be benching him with his fastball velocity up a few ticks this year.

Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell said on Thursday that left-hander Shota Imanaga is throwing his fastball harder this spring, which is mostly a "product of his hamstring being healthy," according to Bruce Levine of Marquee Sports Network. Counsell thinks Imanaga's hamstring injury last year "created some bad mechanical issues while the pitcher compensated for the injury." The 32-year-old Japanese southpaw was an All-Star in his first year in the U.S. in 2024, going 15-3 with a 2.91 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and 174:28 K:BB in 29 starts (173 1/3 innings). Imanaga carried that over into the first half in 2025, posting a 2.65 ERA and 0.93 WHIP in 12 starts before the All-Star break. After a hamstring injury caused him to miss two months, his ERA jumped ot 4.70 with a 1.04 WHIP in the second half. He was even worse in a small sample size in the playoffs, but now back to full health, Imanaga is a clear bounce-back candidate in fantasy.

Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga has teamed with pitching coach Tommy Hottovy to adjust his pitch repertoire going into the 2026 season, according to Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Hottovy said the goal is to keep honing a sweeper from his "natural arm slot" while reintroducing a cutter and finding a sinker grip that "helps maintain velocity." The 32-year-old Japanese southpaw was an All-Star in his first year with the Cubs in 2024, going 15-3 with a 2.91 ERA. He was off to a strong start last year, too, before a left-hamstring injury on May 4 cost him seven weeks and impacted his performance down the stretch. Imanaga allowed 20 home runs in his final 12 starts for a 5.17 ERA in that span. He was even worse in two playoff appearances. If Imanaga can stay healthy and rediscover his magic from 2024, he'll be a great value pick in fantasy drafts. RotoBaller currently has him ranked as the No. 50 starting pitcher.

Left-hander Shota Imanaga accepted the Chicago Cubs' one-year, $22.025 million qualifying offer on Tuesday and will return to the team for the 2026 season, according to The Athletic's Patrick Mooney. The Cubs made Imanaga a free agent earlier this offseason by declining his three-year, $57.5 million option, but now he'll return to the Windy City for at least one more year. The 32-year-old Japanese left-hander was an All-Star in his first year in the big leagues in 2024, but he wasn't quite as good in 2025. He missed time in the first half of the season due to injury and just wasn't the same in the second half. Imanaga finished 9-8 with a 3.73 ERA (4.86 FIP) and 0.99 WHIP with 117 strikeouts and 26 walks in 25 starts covering 144 2/3 frames. Imanaga's strikeout rate dropped from 25.1% in 2024 to 20% in 2025, but his walk rate remained elite, so a bounce back is entirely possible in 2026 in his third year in Chicago.

Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga has become a free agent after the team rejected their option to extend his contract to a fifth year, sources told Jesse Rogers of ESPN. That triggered Imanaga's ability to exercise a $15 million player option for the 2026 season, but he also declined that to hit the open market. The 32-year-old Japanese southpaw will now be free to sign with any team this offseason after going 24-11 with a 3.28 ERA (4.24 FIP), 1.01 WHIP, 23.1% strikeout rate, and 4.3% walk rate in 318 innings and 54 starts in his first two MLB seasons. The Cubs still hold the right to extend a $22 million qualifying offer to Imanaga. Imanaga's 2025 campaign was interrupted by an injury in the first half of the season, and he wasn't nearly as good in the second half after returning, posting a 4.70 ERA after the All-Star break. He also struggled in his two playoff starts and had only 117 K's in 25 starts during the regular season after punching out 174 batters in 29 starts in his rookie campaign.

Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga will start Game 2 of the NLDS against the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday, manager Craig Counsell announced. After falling 9-3 in Game 1 on Saturday, the Cubs will turn to Imanaga as they try to even up the series against their division rivals. Imanaga made 25 starts during the regular season and finished 9-8 with a 3.73 ERA, a .99 WHIP, and 117:26 K:BB in 144 2/3 innings. He and the Brewers are plenty familiar with one another, having faced off three times during the season. The Cubs lost two of those meetings, but Imanaga pitched to a solid 3.66 ERA with 12 hits allowed, 17 strikeouts, and three walks over 17 2/3 frames.

Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Shota Imanaga (6-3) authored a dominant start on Sunday, tossing seven one-run innings against the New York Yankees in a 4-1 win. Imanaga was excellent throughout this one, allowing just two hits and a walk while striking out six. After a solid start to his season, Imanaga missed a month and a half with a hamstring injury. Since his return, he has been fine, but this was by far the best he has looked. Imanaga is now 6-3 with a 2.65 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, and 48 strikeouts in 68 IP. He isn't much of a strikeout artist, but Imanaga does a good job preventing runs and baserunners. He is a must-start pitcher in fantasy, and lines up to start against the Boston Red Sox on Saturday, subject to any changes the Cubs decide to make to their rotation during the All-Star break.

Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Shota Imanaga made his return to the mound for Thursday's outing against the St. Louis Cardinals. This was Imanaga's first start since suffering a hamstring injury in early May. Imanaga didn't look rusty at all as he tossed five scoreless innings, allowing only one hit and one walk with three strikeouts in the win. The Cubs didn't want to push Imanaga too hard during his first game back, but this was an excellent outing from him. He'll look to keep the good times rolling against the Cleveland Guardians in his next start.

Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Shota Imanaga (hamstring) is ready to return to the mound for the Cubs on Thursday after being officially reinstated from the 15-day IL. Imanaga has been sidelined since May 4 when he strained his hamstring while going to cover first base. In his eight starts, he went 3-2 with a 2.82 ERA, 4.53 FIP, and 34 strikeouts in 44 2/3 innings. He had a pair of starts in which he allowed five runs, but in each of his other six outings, he allowed two runs or fewer. He threw 72 pitches and went 4 1/3 innings in his last rehab outing, so he will likely have a restricted workload in his return on Thursday in St. Louis.

Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga (hamstring) will come off the 15-day injured list and start on Thursday in the series finale against the division-rival Cardinals in St. Louis, according to manager Craig Counsell. Imanaga should be rostered in all fantasy leagues, but managers may want to play it safe and keep him on their benches in his first start back this week at Busch Stadium. The 31-year-old Japanese southpaw threw only 72 pitches over 4 1/3 innings in his final minor-league rehab start and hasn't pitched in a major-league game since straining his left hamstring back in early May. Imanaga was an All-Star in his rookie campaign in 2024 and had gone 3-2 with a 2.82 ERA (4.53 FIP) and 1.09 WHIP with 34 strikeouts and 14 walks in 44 2/3 innings over his eight starts this year before landing on the IL.