Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga suffered a left hamstring strain during his start against the Milwaukee Brewers today. The injury occurred with one out in the sixth inning while Imanaga was covering first base on a fielder’s choice play from Christian Yelich. Observers noted that Imanaga was already favoring his hamstring before the play concluded, leading to his immediate removal from the game after consulting with team trainers.
Following the incident, further imaging and tests will be conducted to determine the extent of Imanaga's injury. The Cubs are currently evaluating the possibility of placing him on the 15-day injured list, as reported by 670 The Score’s Bruce Levine. Fortunately, Chicago has an off-day scheduled this coming Thursday, which could allow the team to skip Imanaga’s next turn in the rotation and provide him with some recovery time without officially putting him on the IL.
Despite this potential strategy, the description of the injury as a strain raises concerns about the likelihood of a 15-day stint on the injured list. With Imanaga potentially sidelined and Justin Steele already out for the season due to UCL surgery, the Cubs are facing the unfortunate reality of losing their top two projected starters.
Imanaga, who signed a lucrative four-year, $53 million contract during the 2023-24 offseason, transitioned smoothly from Nippon Professional Baseball to the major leagues. In his first big league season, he achieved an impressive 2.91 ERA over 173 1/3 innings. His performance in the current season was also commendable, with a 2.82 ERA in 44 2/3 innings before today's outing. However, it's worth noting that his 18.9% strikeout rate is below the league average, alongside a tendency to allow hard contact, raising some concerns about his long-term effectiveness.
Despite these secondary metrics, Imanaga's results have contributed to the Cubs rising to first place in the NL Central. Other pitchers such as Jameson Taillon and Matthew Boyd have also performed well, while Colin Rea has stepped up since taking over Steele’s rotation spot, and Ben Brown has been inconsistent but capable in providing innings.
If Imanaga is indeed placed on the injured list, Chris Flexen is expected to be the leading candidate for a starting role. Flexen, who was already functioning as a starter at Triple-A, had his contract selected by the Cubs earlier this week. He made one appearance with the team—a three-inning relief outing during Friday’s 10-0 victory over the Brewers—and should be relatively easy to stretch out for a starting position in Imanaga's absence.
