The Chicago Cubs entered MLB free agency as an expected player but have instead fallen under the radar thus far this winter. That changes now. Japanese pitcher Shota Imanaga has agreed to a “tentative contract” with Chicago, according to USA TODAY's Bob Nightengale.
Pending a Wednesday physical, the Nippon Professional Baseball two-time All-Star is the newest member of the Cubs. This is not much of a surprise, as the team was considered to be one of the finalists to sign Imanaga. Even so, this is big news for fans who were anxiously waiting to see president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer make the first major transaction of the offseason.
Imanaga posted a 2.80 ERA and 7-4 record in 22 outings for the Yokohama DeNA BayStars in 2023. When it was announced that he would be posted for the MLB, interest around the league quickly soared. The left-hander figures to be an important part of Chicago's starting rotation in 2024 and beyond, especially with Marcus Stroman likely to sign elsewhere in free agency.
Shota Imanaga becomes the latest high-profile Japanese star to cross over into The Show, with fellow NPB pitcher Roki Sasaki possibly making the move next offseason. The Los Angeles Dodgers have firmly tapped into that robust market with their signing of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who has joined current face of baseball Shohei Ohtani in representing the West Coast behemoth.
The Cubs should now generate plenty of international interest themselves after securing this deal. Assuming everything goes through with Imanaga, they will seemingly be on the right track to compete for a divisional title. Fans hope that there is more star power to find its way to the Windy City before Spring Training commences.