Tatsuya Imai’s Latest Start Offers Astros Optimism

It appears that Tatsuya Imai is finally turning a corner.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Tatsuya Imai. | Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

Tatsuya Imai was the premier signing of the offseason for the Houston Astros. After spending eight years honing his craft in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan, Imai finally made his way stateside this winter, joining the Astros on a three-year, $54 million contract. With that came expectations that he’d emerge as one of the better arms in Houston’s rotation, with the understanding that some bumps could be experienced along the way. Little did both parties know that the bumps would be hard and the triumphs would be short — at least at the onset.

To say that Imai was roughed up to begin his MLB career would be an understatement. He couldn’t seem to find success in his first four starts, accumulating a hefty 9.24 ERA while striking out 16 and walking 14. The underlying data suggested that he was getting a little unlucky, but the results were the results.

But it appears that the light at the end of the tunnel might be approaching.

In his last start against the Minnesota Twins on May 18, Imai was the most competent he’s been in the majors in a rain-shortened outing. He went 4 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on five hits while striking out five and walking none.

Tatsuya Imai's Reverse Slider/Fader. 👀 pic.twitter.com/ABTyGMvHLQ

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 19, 2026

That last number is the one the Astros should be focusing on. Imai entered the game with one of the worst walk rates in MLB (9.95 BB/9). The fact that he was able to curb that — at least temporarily — against the Twins is a great sign.

The Twins did manage to hit two home runs — both of which came off the bat of Josh Bell — off him, which is not ideal, but also not the end of the world when one considers the greater context of how much of an improvement the outing was at a macro level. If it weren’t for poor weather, then Imai certainly would’ve been able to pitch deeper into the game.

Mechanical Adjustment Appears To Be Paying Off

Houston Astros starting pitcher Tatsuya Imai (45) looks on during a pitch challenge against the Minnesota Twins. | Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

After the contest concluded, Imai — speaking through an interpreter — spoke about how a mechanical change was the reason for the sudden improvement in performance.

“In the outing before this, I was leaning too much whenever I was in my motion,” Imai said (via MLB.com). “But for today’s outing, I was able to put my glove arm higher so that I wouldn’t lean forward as much as I did in the last few outings. … I was able to put my glove arm higher so that I was able to control my body, and I really felt good with it. I was able to put it in the zone better.”

If this mechanical change brings long-lasting improvement, then Imai could become one of the staples of the Astros’ rotation. Everybody knows how much the team would appreciate that. It would be the first sign that the large investment the club made in Imai is finally paying off.