Shota Imanega is quickly becoming the darling of Waveland Avenue as the Chicago Cubs rode his arm to victory.
Imanega stifled Pittsburgh Pirates hitters on Saturday, throwing seven shutout innings. The Cubs used a ninth-inning rally anchored by Christopher Morel for a 1-0 victory at Wrigley Field.
Imanega is pitching in a lights-out stratosphere so far. His ERA sits at 0.84, which Imanega has after his first nine starts in 2024.
Phenomenal ERA
How good is this ERA? Better than Fernando Valenzuela, whose ERA was at 0.91 in his phenomenal opening season in 1981.
Longtime baseball fans know that “Fernando-Mania” spread through the major leagues. His starts at Dodger Stadium became big-time parties for Dodgers fans.
Shota Imanega Keeps Lowering ERA
Whether Chicago Cubs fans find themselves caught up in a similar emotional state remains to be seen. But they love what they’re getting from Imanega. He also has the fourth-lowest ERA among pitchers in the live ball era. This goes back to 1920 and pitchers ahead of Imanega on the list include Jacob DeGrom, Juan Marichal, and Zack Greinke.
“To be honest, I’m not really too interested in my stats or any historic value,” Imanaga said through a translator. “But just knowing there are so many good pitchers that came before me and the fact that in the past there are plenty of guys who were able to do that is a good learning experience.”
In the ninth inning, Morel sent a pitch into center field. Cody Bellinger, who was at second base after he doubled in the inning, raced around third base. He slid into home plate and was called safe. The Pirates, though, challenged the call. After a review, the call stood.
“I knew it was close,” Bellinger said, according to The Associated Press. “I was glad, extremely happy when they said it was confirmed.”
Chicago Cubs Fans Watch Bailey Falter Pitch
Baseball fans have been carefully watching Pirates rookie pitcher Paul Skenes mow down batters in his first few starts. Pirates starter Bailey Falter had quite a day on Saturday. He allowed just three hits in 7 ? innings of work. Falter was definitely impressed by watching Imanega on the mound.
“It was awesome,” Falter said. “That guy is one of the best pitchers in the game right now, and he’s pretty electric. It was good to battle with him.”
Cubs fans, though, will be looking for more solid outings from Imanega going forward.
“I think we’ve discovered that Shota’s strengths are exceptional,” Cubs Manager Craig Counsell said ahead of Saturday’s game, MLB.com reports.
Cubs reliever Hector Neris, who joined the team in the offseason from the Houston Astros, got the win. He’s now 4-0 on the season with a 2.65 ERA. Pirates reliever David Bednar (2-3) took the loss.
“Our pitching staff today was the only reason why we had any chance of getting a win,” Bellinger said. “They all did a tremendous job to keep us in the game.”
Chicago is now 26-21 for the season, while Pittsburgh falls to 21-26. The two teams will wrap up their weekend series on Sunday.
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