One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Imanaga's 4-seam fastball carries 18.0 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
350 thrown, averaging 91.8 mph.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Imanaga's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 93.5 mph, against 83.6 off his splitter.
350 and 300 of them thrown.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Imanaga goes to the splitter: 45.8% of his two-strike pitches, against 31.3% the rest of the time.
253 two-strike pitches in 2026.
He cannot find the zone often enough
Imanaga works off the plate, with only 37.9% of his pitches in the zone, 11th percentile.
840 pitches in 2026. 11th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 480th in MLB.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Imanaga's sinker moves 16.7 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
54 thrown, averaging 90.0 mph.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Imanaga throws the sweeper 38.7% of the time against left-handers and 4.2% against right-handers.
592 pitches to right-handers, 248 to left-handers.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .342 expected average against them, against .261 on his offspeed pitches.
404 of his fastballs thrown.
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Imanaga averages 86.8 mph across his arsenal, 16th percentile in the league.
840 pitches in 2026. 16th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 450th in MLB.
His ball is straighter than it should be
Imanaga's stuff spins at 2,001 rpm, 9th percentile in the league.
840 pitches in 2026. 9th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 489th in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Imanaga puts 59.1% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 34% when he is ahead.
220 located pitches behind, 250 ahead.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
15% of Imanaga's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
126 of 840 located pitches.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Imanaga puts 36.5% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 41.1% of his pitches to left-handers.
592 pitches to right-handed hitters, 248 to left-handed hitters.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Imanaga throws 33.3% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 38.4% with the bases empty.
93 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 747 with the bases empty.
His velocity drains away as the outing goes on
Imanaga's fastball averages 92.0 mph in his first 25 pitches of a start and 91.0 past his 75th.
117 early fastballs, 72 late ones.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Imanaga throws a fastball 55.5% of the time, against 40.4% when he is ahead.
220 pitches behind in the count, 250 ahead.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Imanaga's 4-seam fastball averages 91.8 mph, and has touched 93.8.
350 thrown, 41.7% of his pitches.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Imanaga lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.24 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
840 located pitches in 2026.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Imanaga releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 39 degrees above horizontal and 1.6 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
840 tracked release points, averaging 5.4 feet off the ground.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Imanaga lands 44.3% of his fastballs in the zone and only 30.3% of his offspeed pitches.
404 of his fastballs, 300 of his offspeed pitches.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Imanaga works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Splitter, Sweeper and Sinker. The 4-seam fastball is 41.7% of everything he throws.
840 classified pitches in 2026.
The contact he allows should not turn into many hits
The quality of contact against Imanaga projects a .307 average, 68th percentile.
840 pitches in 2026. 68th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 171st in MLB.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Imanaga's sweeper spins at 2,528 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
121 thrown in 2026.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Imanaga throws a strike on the first pitch 56.9% of the time.
211 plate appearances started in 2026.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Imanaga releases the ball 6.2 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
666 tracked pitches in 2026.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
10.2 mph separates Imanaga's 4-seam fastball from his sweeper, 91.8 against 81.6.
350 and 121 of them respectively.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Imanaga has thrown 15 curveballs this season, 1.8% of his pitches, at 74.1 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
840 classified pitches in 2026.
Show more
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Imanaga's 4-seam fastball carries 18.0 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
350 thrown, averaging 91.8 mph.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Imanaga's sinker moves 16.7 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
54 thrown, averaging 90.0 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Imanaga's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 93.5 mph, against 83.6 off his splitter.
350 and 300 of them thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Imanaga throws the sweeper 38.7% of the time against left-handers and 4.2% against right-handers.
592 pitches to right-handers, 248 to left-handers.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Imanaga's 4-seam fastball averages 91.8 mph, and has touched 93.8.
350 thrown, 41.7% of his pitches.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Imanaga works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Splitter, Sweeper and Sinker. The 4-seam fastball is 41.7% of everything he throws.
840 classified pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Imanaga's sweeper spins at 2,528 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
121 thrown in 2026.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
10.2 mph separates Imanaga's 4-seam fastball from his sweeper, 91.8 against 81.6.
350 and 121 of them respectively.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Imanaga has thrown 15 curveballs this season, 1.8% of his pitches, at 74.1 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
840 classified pitches in 2026.
Show more
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Imanaga goes to the splitter: 45.8% of his two-strike pitches, against 31.3% the rest of the time.
253 two-strike pitches in 2026.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Imanaga puts 59.1% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 34% when he is ahead.
220 located pitches behind, 250 ahead.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Imanaga throws a fastball 55.5% of the time, against 40.4% when he is ahead.
220 pitches behind in the count, 250 ahead.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Imanaga throws a strike on the first pitch 56.9% of the time.
211 plate appearances started in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He cannot find the zone often enough
Imanaga works off the plate, with only 37.9% of his pitches in the zone, 11th percentile.
840 pitches in 2026. 11th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 480th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .342 expected average against them, against .261 on his offspeed pitches.
404 of his fastballs thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Imanaga lands 44.3% of his fastballs in the zone and only 30.3% of his offspeed pitches.
404 of his fastballs, 300 of his offspeed pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Imanaga averages 86.8 mph across his arsenal, 16th percentile in the league.
840 pitches in 2026. 16th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 450th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball is straighter than it should be
Imanaga's stuff spins at 2,001 rpm, 9th percentile in the league.
840 pitches in 2026. 9th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 489th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
15% of Imanaga's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
126 of 840 located pitches.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Imanaga lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.24 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
840 located pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Imanaga puts 36.5% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 41.1% of his pitches to left-handers.
592 pitches to right-handed hitters, 248 to left-handed hitters.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Imanaga throws 33.3% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 38.4% with the bases empty.
93 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 747 with the bases empty.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His velocity drains away as the outing goes on
Imanaga's fastball averages 92.0 mph in his first 25 pitches of a start and 91.0 past his 75th.
117 early fastballs, 72 late ones.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Imanaga releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 39 degrees above horizontal and 1.6 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
840 tracked release points, averaging 5.4 feet off the ground.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Imanaga releases the ball 6.2 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
666 tracked pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
The contact he allows should not turn into many hits
The quality of contact against Imanaga projects a .307 average, 68th percentile.
840 pitches in 2026. 68th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 171st in MLB.
Cubs