Shota Imanaga
Crafty lefty whose low-release riding 4-seamer plays up and pairs with a sharp splitter. Eight seasons with Yokohama DeNA in NPB (2.26 ERA in 2022), then signed a 4-yr/$53M deal with the Cubs after the 2023 posting window. Went 15-3 with a 2.92 ERA and 174 K as an MLB rookie, finished 4th in NL ROY voting and earned an All-Star nod.
Awards
1 totalAll-Star
2026 Season (Pitching)
ERA
2.17
W-L
2-1
SV
0
HLD
0
SO
32
WHIP
0.72
IP
29.0
vs LHP / vs RHP (Current)
2026 SEASONPitching
| Split | AB | BAA | HR | SO | BB | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| vs LHB | 31 | .129 | 1 | 15 | 3 | .464 |
| vs RHB | 71 | .155 | 2 | 17 | 3 | .499 |
Pitch Arsenal (2026)
USAGE · AVG VELOCITY (MLB Stats API)| Pitch | Usage | Distribution | Avg Velocity (mph) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4-Seam Fastball FF | 44.5% | 92.0 | |
| Splitter FS | 33.4% | 83.5 | |
| Sweeper ST | 14% | 82.2 | |
| Sinker SI | 5.7% | 90.3 | |
| Curveball CU | 2.4% | 74.2 |
Year-by-Year
| Year | Team | W | L | HLD | SV | ERA | SO | IP | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | CHC | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2.91 | 174 | 173.1 | 1.02 |
| 2025 | CHC | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3.73 | 117 | 144.2 | 0.99 |
| 2026 | CHC | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.17 | 32 | 29.0 | 0.72 |
CAREER #1 TOP 10
Pitch Arsenal (Career)
2024–2026 · BAA / SLG / wOBA / WHIFF% (Baseball Savant)| Pitch | Usage | Pitches | BAA | SLG | wOBA | Whiff% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4-Seam Fastball FF | 50.6% | 2606 | .224 | .501 | .331 | 17% |
| Splitter FS | 31.7% | 1634 | .210 | .324 | .257 | 38.4% |
| Sweeper ST | 12% | 618 | .185 | .233 | .198 | 35.4% |
| Sinker SI | 2.2% | 111 | .159 | .191 | .238 | 25.5% |
| Changeup CH | 1.9% | 99 | .200 | .233 | .208 | 32.7% |
| Curveball CU | 1.6% | 85 | .444 | .556 | .539 | 0% |
vs LHP / vs RHP (Career)
MLB CAREERPitching
| Split | AB | BAA | HR | SO | BB | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| vs LHB | 301 | .206 | 10 | 89 | 17 | .589 |
| vs RHB | 1000 | .219 | 51 | 234 | 43 | .668 |
Situational (2026)
HOME / AWAY · RISP · LATE & CLOSEPitching
| Split | IP | ERA | K | BB | WHIP | BAA | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 18.0 | 2.50 | 17 | 4 | 0.72 | .143 | .480 |
| Away | 11.0 | 1.64 | 15 | 2 | 0.73 | .154 | .503 |
| RISP | 4.0 | — | 4 | 0 | 0.25 | .077 | .385 |
Situational (Career)
Pitching
| Split | IP | ERA | K | BB | WHIP | BAA | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 185.1 | 3.21 | 184 | 30 | 0.93 | .207 | .634 |
| Away | 161.2 | 3.17 | 139 | 30 | 1.04 | .227 | .667 |
| RISP | 48.2 | — | 46 | 8 | 0.92 | .213 | .634 |
| Late & Close | 9.2 | — | 13 | 2 | 1.55 | .317 | .925 |
Monthly (2026)
MONTH-BY-MONTH SPLITSPitching
| Month | IP | ERA | K | WHIP | BAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar/Apr | 5.0 | 7.20 | 7 | 1.60 | .300 |
| April | 24.0 | 1.13 | 25 | 0.54 | .110 |
Postseason (Career)
ALL PLAYOFF GAMESPitching
| G | IP | ERA | K | WHIP | BAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 6.2 | 8.10 | 6 | 1.50 | .296 |