One of the Chicago Cubs’ high-profile offseason additions has been viewed as one of the best moves of winter so far.
The start of the year for the Chicago Cubs has been impressive.
After an offseason saw the front office make decent moves, there was certainly more that could’ve been done to boost this roster.
However, the Cubs have played well so far, sitting at 13-8 through the early stage of the year.
Chicago signed Shota Imanaga out of Japan, a left-handed pitcher who was one of the hottest names on the market this offseason. Imanaga, who had impressed for most of his career in Japan, has been even better than advertised in his first four big league starts.
The 30-year-old has a 0.84 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, and 21 strikeouts. His ability to keep the ball in the yard has also been impressive, allowing just one home run in 21 1/3 innings pitched. When Imanaga signed, there were concerns that he was going to allow too many home runs after that was a problem during his career in Japan.
Thomas Harrigan of MLB.com listed 10 offseason additions that are already paying off, listing Imanaga as one of the players making an impact. He writes that in the absence of Jameson Taillon and Justin Steele due to injury, the rookie has stepped up in a big way.
Factor in the concerning starts of Kyle Hendricks and Jordan Wicks, what Imanaga has done has been a huge help to this Cubs rotation.
If he can continue to throw the way he has, Chicago should find themselves in a position to win a game every five days.
His stuff has been that good so far and will be needed for this team to find the success they’re looking for in 2024.
