I love Nico Hoerner; you love him, everyone loves him, but we’ve seen him go on crazy runs at the plate in the past, and he’s been trending in a positive direction at the plate for years. He’s now establishing himself as the heartbeat of the team from the leadoff spot, and he’ll get his roses. But right now, the best storyline by far is the resurgence of Shōta Imanaga.
We’re talking about a guy who instantly became a fan-favorite in 2024, backed it up with an All-Star appearance, but by the end of the 2025 season, the Cubs didn’t trust him in the biggest game of the year. There were serious questions whether or not Imanaga would return as the Cubs declined to pick up his option, and ultimately waited to see if he would accept the qualifying offer.
The left-handed pitcher did, and some fans groaned at the decision, given Imanaga’s decline in 2025. However, as much as injuries are sometimes written off as excuses, it really does appear that Imanaga’s hamstring strain screwed up his second season with the Cubs, because not only is he pitching great again, but he’s looking better than ever.
In Wednesday’s series finale against the Philadelphia Phillies, Imanaga struck out 11 batters and generated 26 swings and misses, the most whiffs from a pitcher in a single game so far in 2026. Through four starts, Imanaga leads all qualified starting pitchers with a 37.8 K%.
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The home runs will happen, as Trea Turner greeted Imanaga with a leadoff home run on Wednesday, but Imanaga is once again showing what made him special in 2024. He’s missing bats, not walking guys, and he has regained the ability to make batters chase pitches.
Let’s compare his numbers so far in 2026 to his first year in 2024, when he was an All-Star, and in 2025, when Imanaga regressed after the hamstring injury.
2024: 34.8 chase %, 28.3 whiff %, 25.1 K%, 91.9mph fastball velocity
2025: 31.6 chase %, 24.6 whiff %, 20.6 K%, 90.8mph fastball velocity
2026: 42.4 chase %, 33.8 whiff %, 37.8 K%, 92.2mph fastball velocity
Yeah, Shōta is back.
And back to the original point. Imanaga being this good so far AND the way he’s been good should project to ongoing success in 2026, which is a huge deal for the Cubs after losing Cade Horton for the season. This version of Imanaga is 100% a go-to starting pitcher in the playoffs, which very few fans had faith in happening after how he looked at the end of last season.
