Cubs Pitcher Shota Imanaga Looks To Continue Strong Start Against Rangers

Two of baseball's best meet Wednesday at 1:20 p.m. CT at Wrigley Field.

The Chicago Cubs are off to a 9-5 start, tied with the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres for the most wins in MLB. Cubs manager Craig Counsell turns to starter Shota Imanaga on Wednesday to face the Texas Rangers, whose eight wins lead the American League.

In his first MLB season after coming over from Japan, Imanaga became an All-Star and finished fifth in 2024 NL Cy Young voting and fourth in NL rookie of the year voting. He posted a 2.91 ERA in 173.1 innings. Through three starts in 2025, he's shown no signs of slowing down.

Imanaga tossed four no-hit innings in his season debut against the Dodgers in Japan on March 18. Since returning to the United States, he allowed just one run and three hits across seven innings in a win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. And most recently, he held the Padres to just one run and four hits in 7.1 innings. That has set a high bar for Imanaga.

First inning DOT from Shota Imanaga 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/5TEsNW3jrH
— MLB (@MLB) April 4, 2025

Going into Wednesday's game, the Cubs are favored on the moneyline at minus-168 odds, and the Rangers are plus-142 underdogs, according to the FanDuel Sportsbook. The over/under is 7.5 runs on a day where the forecast calls for 42 degrees and cloudy skies at Wrigley Field. The Cubs have won seven of their last eight games and have scored at least seven runs in four straight.

Imanaga's strikeout line is set at 5.5, with minus-132 odds to go over and plus-104 odds to go under. His strikeout percentage has dropped from 25.1% in 2024 to 14.7% in 2025. He struck out at least six batters in 18 of 29 starts last season, but he has struck out just four batters in each of the last two outings despite pitching at least seven innings.

Here's how the Rangers will line up against Imanaga.

Marcus Semien, 2B
Corey Seager, SS
Josh Jung, 3B
Adolis Garcia, RF
Jake Burger, 1B
Kyle Higashioka, C
Kevin Pillar, LF
Jonah Heim, DH
Leody Taveras, CF

The Rangers' lineup is tied for 20th in MLB with 89 strikeouts, and they're 21st with 39 runs scored. Texas has a good amount of power, however, tying for ninth with 13 home runs. Rangers infielder Jake Burger and Cubs right fielder Kyle Tucker have the best home run odds at plus-420. The Cubs led MLB with 94 runs scored, though they're the only team that has played 14 games so far. The Dodgers and Diamondbacks are next with 63.

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