This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Imai goes to the slider: 61% of his two-strike pitches, against 40.6% the rest of the time.
433 two-strike pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Imai's sinker moves 17.9 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
64 thrown, averaging 94.5 mph.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Imai puts 43.8% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 36.5% of his pitches to left-handers.
114 pitches to right-handed hitters, 171 to left-handed hitters.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Imai releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 31 degrees above horizontal and 1.8 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
1448 tracked release points, averaging 5.2 feet off the ground.
He cannot find the zone often enough
Imai works off the plate, with only 39.4% of his pitches in the zone, 17th percentile.
285 pitches in 2026. 17th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 445th in MLB.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
53.1% of the contact Imai gives up is hit hard, 6th percentile.
285 pitches in 2026. 6th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 506th in MLB.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Imai works with 2 pitches: Slider and 4-Seam Fastball. The slider is 46.7% of everything he throws.
1451 classified pitches in 2026.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Imai lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.22 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
1448 located pitches in 2026.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Imai throws a strike on the first pitch 53% of the time.
338 plate appearances started in 2026.
His ball is straighter than it should be
Imai's stuff spins at 2,077 rpm, 15th percentile in the league.
285 pitches in 2026. 15th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 454th in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Imai projects a .372 average, 12th percentile.
285 pitches in 2026. 12th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 471st in MLB.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Imai's 4-seam fastball averages 94.8 mph, and has touched 98.3.
638 thrown, 44% of his pitches.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Imai releases the ball 5.9 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
1358 tracked pitches in 2026.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Imai's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 89.6 mph, against 86.4 off his slider.
638 and 677 of them thrown.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Imai throws a fastball 54.5% of the time, against 44.5% when he is ahead.
451 pitches behind in the count, 384 ahead.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Imai's 4-seam fastball carries 10.4 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
638 thrown, averaging 94.8 mph.
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Imai averages 90.7 mph across his arsenal, 66th percentile in the league.
285 pitches in 2026. 66th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 184th in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Imai puts 52.5% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 37.2% when he is ahead.
451 located pitches behind, 384 ahead.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 90.2 mph off the bat against Imai, 25th percentile.
285 pitches in 2026. 25th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 403rd in MLB.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
18% of Imai's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
261 of 1448 located pitches.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Imai throws the 4-seam fastball 50.6% of the time against right-handers and 39.9% against left-handers.
547 pitches to right-handers, 904 to left-handers.
He is throwing as hard in the seventh as in the first
Imai's fastball averages 94.7 mph in his first 25 pitches of a start and 95.2 past his 75th.
267 early fastballs, 82 late ones.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Imai has thrown 64 sinkers this season, 4.4% of his pitches, at 94.5 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
1451 classified pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Imai's slider spins at 2,256 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
677 thrown in 2026.
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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 Imai goes to the slider: 61% of his two-strike pitches, against 40.6% the rest of the time.
433 two-strike pitches in 2026.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Imai throws a strike on the first pitch 53% of the time.
338 plate appearances started in 2026.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Imai throws a fastball 54.5% of the time, against 44.5% when he is ahead.
451 pitches behind in the count, 384 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Imai puts 52.5% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 37.2% when he is ahead.
451 located pitches behind, 384 ahead.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Imai's sinker moves 17.9 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
64 thrown, averaging 94.5 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Imai's 4-seam fastball carries 10.4 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
638 thrown, averaging 94.8 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Imai puts 43.8% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 36.5% of his pitches to left-handers.
114 pitches to right-handed hitters, 171 to left-handed hitters.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Imai releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 31 degrees above horizontal and 1.8 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
1448 tracked release points, averaging 5.2 feet off the ground.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Imai releases the ball 5.9 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
1358 tracked pitches in 2026.
He is throwing as hard in the seventh as in the first
Imai's fastball averages 94.7 mph in his first 25 pitches of a start and 95.2 past his 75th.
267 early fastballs, 82 late ones.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He cannot find the zone often enough
Imai works off the plate, with only 39.4% of his pitches in the zone, 17th percentile.
285 pitches in 2026. 17th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 445th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
Too much of the contact against him is loud
53.1% of the contact Imai gives up is hit hard, 6th percentile.
285 pitches in 2026. 6th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 506th in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Imai projects a .372 average, 12th percentile.
285 pitches in 2026. 12th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 471st in MLB.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 90.2 mph off the bat against Imai, 25th percentile.
285 pitches in 2026. 25th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 403rd in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Imai works with 2 pitches: Slider and 4-Seam Fastball. The slider is 46.7% of everything he throws.
1451 classified pitches in 2026.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Imai's 4-seam fastball averages 94.8 mph, and has touched 98.3.
638 thrown, 44% of his pitches.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Imai's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 89.6 mph, against 86.4 off his slider.
638 and 677 of them thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Imai throws the 4-seam fastball 50.6% of the time against right-handers and 39.9% against left-handers.
547 pitches to right-handers, 904 to left-handers.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Imai has thrown 64 sinkers this season, 4.4% of his pitches, at 94.5 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
1451 classified pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Imai's slider spins at 2,256 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
677 thrown in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Imai lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.22 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
1448 located pitches in 2026.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
18% of Imai's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
261 of 1448 located pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball is straighter than it should be
Imai's stuff spins at 2,077 rpm, 15th percentile in the league.
285 pitches in 2026. 15th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 454th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Imai averages 90.7 mph across his arsenal, 66th percentile in the league.
285 pitches in 2026. 66th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 184th in MLB.
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