Players · I · Pitcher · 2026

Shota Imanaga

Age: 33
B/T: L/L
Height: 5' 10"
Weight: 175 lb
Number: #18

Born: September 1, 1993 in Kitakyushu, Japan
MLB debut: April 1, 2024
Salary, 2026: $22M

dbWAR: 4.7
IP: 173.1
ERA: 3.74
FIP: 4.44
K/9: 8.9
FIP−: 106

Shota Imanaga is a starting pitcher for the Chicago Cubs. In 2026 he struck out 171 batters over 173.1 innings across 31 appearances, 31 of them starts, going 11-10. His ERA of 3.74 is 10.5% lower than the league average of 4.18 — 7th of 16 on his team, and 214th of 538 among MLB pitchers with 20+ innings. Stripping out defence, his 4.44 FIP suggests that his ERA had some help behind him. He missed bats on 29.6% of swings (15.3% of every pitch he threw), walked 5.3% of the batters he faced and struck out 24.4%. His 1.6 dbWAR is built from that FIP rather than runs allowed, so it credits him for what he controls and not for the defence behind him.

League context

Percentile among qualified pitchers, 2026.

FIP4.44

K/98.9

WHIP1.10

WAR1.6

WAR by season

Pitching

Standard and advanced, by season.


2026	CHC	31	31	173.1	11	10	153	72	171	37	3.74	4.44	1.10	8.9	1.9	89	106	1.6
2025	CHC	25	25	144.2	9	8	117	60	117	26	3.73	4.86	0.99	7.3	1.6	90	117	0.6
2024	CHC	29	29	173.1	15	3	149	56	174	28	2.91	3.72	1.02	9.0	1.5	71	91	2.5

Platoon splits

How left- and right-handed hitters fare against him.

Season

Opponent batting by the side the hitter bats from, 2026. Counted from play-by-play, so totals can differ from the box-score season line by a plate appearance or two.
Split	PA	AB	H	HR	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	wOBA	K%
vs LHB	190	173	40	11	13	48	.231	.296	.462	.330	25.3%
vs RHB	512	483	113	23	24	123	.234	.275	.416	.301	24.0%

Pitch sequencing

What Shota Imanaga throws in each count, and what he follows each pitch with. Select any cell for the breakdown.

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Four-seamSplitterSweeperSinkerCurveballSlider

Select a count to see exactly what Shota Imanaga throws in it.

Pitch arsenal

What he throws, how hard, how often it misses, and what hitters do with it.

Season


Four-Seam Fastball	40.2%	1,126	91.6	2,495	48.0%	20.2%	248	.246	.769
Splitter	34.5%	966	82.8	1,123	48.6%	41.0%	266	.195	.556
Sweeper	14.5%	407	81.0	2,548	46.2%	29.1%	76	.263	.881
Sinker	5.9%	165	90.2	2,460	44.2%	17.0%	54	.296	.909
Curveball	2.9%	80	74.4	2,513	50.0%	15.8%	5	—	—
Slider	1.9%	54	86.4	2,476	53.7%	30.0%	9	—	—

Shota Imanaga's arsenal by usage. Velocity is average release speed in mph, spin in rpm, and whiff rate is misses per swing — the cleanest single measure of whether a pitch beats hitters. BAA and OPS are what hitters did against each pitch, credited to the one that ended the plate appearance, and are left blank under 15 at-bats.

Head to head

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Similar players

Nearest 2026 seasons by command, run prevention and role, on rate statistics rather than totals.

Gerrit ColeNYY

ERA: 3.61
FIP: 3.93
SO: 131
WAR: 2.0

Very close

Nathan EovaldiTEX

ERA: 4.27
FIP: 4.23
SO: 141
WAR: 1.4

Very close

Logan GilbertSEA

ERA: 3.81
FIP: 3.92
SO: 197
WAR: 2.6

Bryce MillerSEA

ERA: 4.17
FIP: 4.41
SO: 119
WAR: 1.0

How these are computed

wOBA uses linear weights measured from this season's own play-by-play rather than published constants, and wRC+ is park-adjusted against that same league. dbWAR is our own open implementation — not fWAR or bWAR — and the full derivation, including its simplifications, is on the methodology page.