What the Angels Should Expect When Facing Tatsuya Imai

Japan has become a significant source of talent and the Angels will face the newest hurler to cross the Pacific in Tatsuya Imai today. With the AL West rivals not facing each other in preseason play, this will be the first live look the Angels hitters will have on Imai.

Let's take a look at Imai's career and what the Angels can expect as they face him for the first of likely several times.

Tatsuya Imai has a great fastball/slider combination.

Pitching for the Seibu Lions, Imai tossed 963.2 innings with an ERA of 3.15. He stuck out a respectable 8.5 batters per 9 innings and did a great job of keeping the ball in the yard. HIs 0.7 home runs allowed per 9 innings is a big reason why Houston brought him stateside. The average MLB pitcher allows 1-1.2 home runs per 9 innings and the Astros are hoping Imai can continue preventing the long ball.

Imai's best pitch is his slider. It does not light up the radar gun, typically hitting 88-89 MPH, but it has great shape and breaks much differently than a usual slider. So differently it is often called a reverse slider. Take a look here at one from Spring Training this year..

There's that Tatsuya Imai arm-side slider. Splitter was working today as well. pic.twitter.com/k4BxHvC70u
— Aram Leighton (@AramLeighton8) March 5, 2026

Not only the does the slider break the opposite direction hitters expect, it comes out of Imai's hand at the same release point as his upper 90s fastball. In camp this year, Imai has routinely hit 98.5 MPH with his heater. In looking at the two piches back to back below it is quite evident how similary the two pitches are released.

The Houston Astros are signing free agent Japanese pitcher Tatsuya Imai, per @JeffPassan

THIS IS A BIG DEAL pic.twitter.com/p0HAFPhhnE
— Michael Schwab (@michaelschwab13) January 1, 2026

Those two pitches are his primary weapons against right handed hitters and he posseses an above average splitter with good vertical sink that he will use against lefties. He'll shows the sinker to righties from time to time but he generally attacks them with fastballs and sliders.

How can the Angels have success?

Imai's fastball tends to run in the top of the zone and can be flat at times. And while 98 MPH is top of the hill in Japan, MLB hitters are more accustomed to that type of velocity. The Angels have several good high ball hitters like Zach Neto and Jorge Soler who could make Imai pay if he grooves one high and straight.

Patience could also be a virtue against Imai. His 8.5 strikeouts per 9 innings in Japan is a lower number than previous MLB crossovers like Yoshinobu Yamamoto (9,3) and Imai's 4.4 walks per 9 innings is over double what Yamamoto's was in Japan (2.1). Both of those numbers are worse than other contemporaries like Shohei Ohtani (10.3 K's, 3.3 BB).

Outside of his curve ball, Imai's lowest scouting grade is his control which has improved to 50 in the last year. That is exactly MLB average. So the key for the Angels hitters is to make Imai work in the strike zone and hammer the heater when it comes in high and flat.

Imai's numbers in Japan mirror Angels lefty Yusei Kikuchi's.

Imai's NPB numbers compare most favorably to Angels southpaw Yusei Kikuchi, who struck out 8 batters per nine innings and walked 3.3. They both gave up an identical 0.7 home runs per 9 innings. Kikuchi had the better ERA at 2.77, however.

He is a really good pitcher with individual pitches that grade higher than Kikuchi. But like Yusei, Imai can lose control at times and rack up high pitch counts. With Major League hitters more familiar with velocity, he will have to prove his fastball is effective to keep hitters off balance and drop in his nasty reverse slider.

So far this season the Angels have shown a much better approach at the plate. They will need to keep that going if they want to get a win against Imai.