Shota Imanaga Fantasy Stats

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.

Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga (hamstring) will come off the 15-day injured list and make a start with the big-league club next week against the division-rival St. Louis Cardinals, according to 670 The Score's Bruce Levine. The 31-year-old Japanese southpaw hasn't pitched for the Cubs since May 4 when he suffered a strained hamstring against the Milwaukee Brewers. He made three minor-league rehab starts in the rookie-level Arizona Complex League and Triple-A Iowa and threw 10 1/3 scoreless innings with 16 strikeouts and two walks, although two of those outings were in the ACL. While Imanaga will be a little more shaky as a starting fantasy option in his first start back against the Cardinals, he should absolutely be rostered in all fantasy formats. He went 3-2 with a 2.82 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 34 strikeouts in eight starts earlier this year before tweaking his hammy.

Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Shota Imanaga (hamstring) is scheduled to make a rehab start at Triple-A Iowa on Friday. Imanaga made a rehab start on Saturday at Rookie-level Arizona Complex League. He appears to be progressing and is hopefully going to make his final rehab start this upcoming Friday. Imanaga has been out since early May due to a hamstring issue. If everything goes well, Imanaga should be back in the Cubs rotation by the end of June.

Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell said that left-hander Shota Imanaga (hamstring) will require a few more minor-league rehab starts before he returns to the major-league starting rotation. "Shota has got a couple more starts before you're going to see him in Chicago. That's because as a starter, you've got to go through this process where you're lengthened out and your arm recovers," Counsell said. The 31-year-old Japanese hurler threw two scoreless innings in his first rehab start on Monday at the rookie-level Arizona Complex League. If he can avoid setbacks in his next couple of rehab starts on the farm, we could see him back in Chicago by the end of June. He's been slow to recover from a strained left hamstring that has kept him out since early May, but fantasy managers should be stashing him everywhere. Imanaga had a 2.82 ERA and 1.09 WHIP with 34 K's in 44 2/3 frames over eight starts before his injury.