Shota Imanaga does it again as his dazzling year with the Cubs continues

When Shota Imanaga finally finished off Brendan Donovan in the top of the seventh Saturday afternoon with a 2-2 sweeper low and away, getting the swinging strikeout and stranding two St. Louis Cardinals runners, the emotions were clear. You could see it just by watching how he celebrated the punchout.

The fist pumps.

The leg kick.

The roar.

It was his sixth strikeout on his career-high 103rd pitch of the game. With the Chicago Cubs clinging to a one-run lead at the time, it came in the biggest moment of the game.

So, as he walked off the mound and back to the dugout, what was going through Imanaga’s mind?

“I was pretty hungry, so I was thinking about what kind of food, nutrition I should take after the game,” he said through interpreter Edwin Stanberry. “This is my honest thoughts.”

If that seems to be a tongue-in-cheek answer from Imanaga, that’s just because that’s the kind of personality he’s brought to the Cubs’ clubhouse.

Things like getting a nameplate above his locker reading “MIKE IMANAGA II” (since “Mike” is the name he uses when he picks up coffee), like trying as often as he can to engage with teammates and coaches without his interpreter, like the emotion he shows on the mound — all of that displays how comfortable he’s grown with the Cubs.

And that personality has helped the rest of the group grow more comfortable around him, too.

“He’s huge here,” said Yan Gomes, who caught all seven of Imanaga’s frames in the Cubs’ 5-1 win. “Like, he is a big part of here. He wants to gel with everyone, and that’s the coolest thing. He doesn’t speak very good English, but he tries, and he just tries to hang out with everybody. You guys see the whole ‘Mike Imanaga’ [thing], like he’s told us that story. He’s trying to be a part of this, and we appreciate that.”

It’s more than just fitting in with the team, though. On the field, at least, Imanaga has been everything the Cubs have needed him to be after signing him out of Japan last winter.

His latest masterpiece was a seven-inning, one-run performance against the Cardinals, who the Cubs had yet to beat in 2024. He limited them to just three hits across the first six frames (and he didn’t walk a single batter on the day), before hitting Nolan Arenado with a pitch and giving up a single to Iván Herrera to put two men on with one out in the seventh.

A flyout later, Donovan stepped to the plate. During what was ultimately an eight-pitch battle, Imanaga thought he froze Donovan on pitch No. 5, a four-seam fastball just outside. Home-plate umpire Paul Clemons called it ball-two instead.

Imanaga didn’t look pleased that he didn’t get the call, but he didn’t voice any frustration toward Clemons. He quickly got back to work and got Donovan swinging three pitches later.

“That pitch, if it’s a strike, if it’s a ball, that’s not something I can control,” Imanaga said. “So, I try not to put too much emotions to something that’s out of my control. I really just thought about, ‘OK, what to do on the next pitch.'”

“Somehow he does it in a friendly way, it feels like,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “But he’s competing at the same time. That’s hard to do. I know I don’t have that trait. It’s just fun to watch him do that, that he can kind of stay within himself and keep the competitor going and stay in the moment really well. It’s cool to watch.”

With that outing, Imanaga lowered his ERA on the season to 1.89 in 76 innings over 13 starts, which ranks third among qualified pitchers in baseball. Since 1970, only 12 other pitchers have posted an ERA of 1.89 or lower in at least 70 innings over their first 13 career starts (per Stathead).

And to break down how important he’s been for the Cubs this season, consider this: The Cubs are now 11-2 when he takes the ball; they’re 23-35 when he doesn’t.

“He takes it upon himself to go out there in the seventh inning with 100-plus pitches and give us everything that he’s got,” Gomes said. It’s why everybody loves him, man. He’s doing a tremendous job just being a good guy and going out there and competing every fifth day, but also being a good teammate.”

“He’s 6-8 innings, 1-2 runs every time, it feels like,” said Ian Happ, whose three-run homer in the seventh gave the Cubs some breathing room. So for us, just the confidence that he’s going to pitch deep into the game, he’s going to be super competitive, and we’re going to be in it.”

As it stands, the Cubs are 34-37. They’re 7 1/2 games back in the division and a game out of a wild card spot.

If not for Imanaga pitching the way he has, things could look much worse. So it’s a credit to him for going out there, being unfazed by the moment less than three months into his major league career and consistently giving his team a chance to win.

If the Cubs are able to right the ship and make a run over the summer, Imanaga continuing to put on performances like he did Saturday should be a major reason why.

“That’s what great starting pitchers do for a team, for sure,” Counsell said. “When they take the ball, you know you’re going to get a good outing. You know you’re going to get a really good chance to win. You feel it when those good starters, their day comes. He’s lived up to that, for sure.”

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