Best of the Cubs: Shota Imanaga is pitching like an ace
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How is Shota Imanaga performing as a pitcher for the Cubs?
Way out in dead center, just to the left of dead center. Swing and a miss by Schwarber, and that's outnumbered one. Here's the 2-2 pitch. Swing and a miss, strike three. Shota strikes out Schwarber for the second time. He's got five in the game. 2-2 pitch, swing and a miss, strike three. Shota ends up striking out Schwarber after a lengthy battle.
I think, look, there's this question of where does confidence come from, you know, do you have to do it or can you have it? I think we were all very confident in what Shota was going to bring to the table from really the first time he threw a bullpen this spring, and he's pitching at a really high level, and I think he is really confident right now.
Mully and Hall, 104-3 the score. Showed up appreciation day. What do you think?
Yes, I think that's appropriate. I think he has earned it. I don't know if it's an apology or an appreciation or just an acceptance of that. He is looking like the pitcher he was in 2024 when he was the best pitcher on the Cubs staff. And through four starts... For a lot of different reasons, they have not had a starter any better than Shota Imanaga. And you've got to give him credit for coming back to a situation where you talk about confidence. Yes, he's showing some confidence. He's building it at bat every inning, every pitch. Mully, the Cubs, I think, were fairly confident last offseason that he was not going to accept the qualifying offer. And he did.
We talked to Jed about that, and I thought he made a good point. We never really went over, but they felt that with his contract, it was complicated, and that they couldn't really just dump his contract. He didn't use that word.
What factors contribute to Shota Imanaga's confidence on the mound?
I'm just saying what I heard him tell us. Let's take a listen. It was a complicated contractual situation. I'd never been a part of a have a contract like that. We did the deal. And then, um, you know, we had a three year, $57 million decision and we declined that. And then he had a, a two year, um, $30 million decision and he declined that. And so, you know, it made sense to make him a qualifying offer and bring him back on a one year deal. And, you know, I think what showed is that, you know, for almost a year and three quarters of that, of that deal that, you know, it looked like we were going to pick up the club option and he was pitching great. And, He really struggled at the end, which sort of allowed that part of the transaction to play out the way it did.
But he worked unbelievably hard this offseason. He skipped the WBC because he wanted to focus on us, honestly. And I think he's looked really good the last couple of times out this spring. And so I'm excited about it. And we are oftentimes bound by recency bias. And the recency was his struggles at the end. But really prior to that, he was excellent for us. And I'm hopeful he's the same way. Very interesting, because what he's telling you is that because they had the three-year $57 million, well, we're not doing that.
How did the Cubs' offense come alive during their series in Philadelphia?
They, too, were impacted by recency bias. Of course. And then it became a two-year deal at less than he, and he, well, I don't want that.
Don't want that.
So they settled on the third option, which was one year. And I really believe that they thought if he signs elsewhere, they'll get some compensation for it. It was the correct way of doing business. But I agree with you. I don't think... that they anticipated, first of all, his off-season work and everything he's done and skipping the WBC. That all happened after he signed the one-year deal.
Yes, it was, after he accepted the qualifying offer. Yes. But I think that it sounds like they checked a box. It was very much a matter of procedure to make sure they were protected. And if he went to elsewhere... and became a free agent, then they would get compensation.
That's exactly right.
They thought he might bet on himself. And I can understand that given the confident pitcher that Shota Imanaga has been. Last year, confidence may be dipped. His performance certainly did. They lost trust in him. The reason the public lost confidence in Shota Imanaga, yes, we can see what we saw in the second half.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
How is Shota Imanaga performing as a pitcher for the Cubs?
0:03–2:03
2
What factors contribute to Shota Imanaga's confidence on the mound?
2:03–3:23
3
How did the Cubs' offense come alive during their series in Philadelphia?
3:23–6:35
4
Why does Nico Hoerner prefer hitting leadoff for the Cubs?
6:35–6:51
5
What changes have been made to the Cubs' lineup this season?
6:51–10:53
6
How has Shota Imanaga adjusted his pitching strategy this year?
10:53–15:03
7
What insights does Nico Hoerner share about his hitting philosophy?
15:03–15:21
8
What are the challenges facing the Cubs' bullpen currently?
15:21–56:06
Speakers
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