Craig Counsell Talks Shota Imanaga Plan After Cubs Starter Makes Unwanted History

The Chicago Cubs may have a Shota Imanaga problem on their hands.

Taking the mound for a primetime – and winnable game – against the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday night, Imanaga blew another lead. The Cubs found themselves up 2-0 before one swing changed the game for the Reds, giving them the 3-2 advantage. It's an all-too-common occurrence when Imanaga is in the game, as giving up home runs has truly been his Achilles heel.

Imanaga would go 5.0 innings in the team's 7-5 loss (6 earned). He would fork over three home runs, increasing his season total to 33. That marks a single-season career-high for Imanaga, and he has only seen this number go up each year of his career. After giving up 27 runs in 2024, Imanaga gave up 31 over his 25 starts in 2025.

According to Michael Cerami of Bleacher Nation, these 91 homers allowed since his 2024 debut are a league high. OptaSTATS also shared some unflattering news, noting that Imanaga has now allowed three or more home runs in SIX games this season. How many times has a pitcher done that in MLB history, you ask?

None. Imanaga is the first.

Imanaga has now pitched 22.2 innings in August, and he holds a very concerning 5.96 ERA. The best version of him can still stack strikeouts and keep the hit count low. But as long as he is giving up the long ball at this rate, the Cubs have to reconsider his role as the postseason looms.

Chicago has already let the top spot in the Wild Card standings slip away. With three straight series losses, the Philadelphia Phillies have caught up and tied them at 70-60. The Cubs still sit ahead thanks to the tiebreaker advantage, but the walls are caving in fast. Every game counts, especially with the Milwaukee Brewers now in town for a three-game set.

Nevertheless, despite the dire situation and Imanaga making the wrong kind of history, Craig Counsell said he has no plans to strip him from the rotation.

Craig Counsell Talks Shota Imanaga ...

Aug 30, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs pitcher Shota Imanaga (18) throws the ball against the Cincinnati Reds during the first inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Following Shota Imanaga's rough outing, Craig Counsell was unsurprisingly asked about whether his role as a starter was in jeopardy. The manager did the opposite of fueling that narrative.

"If you look at the season he’s having, he’s having a pretty decent season," Counsell said. "I wouldn’t say that at all, no. We need Shota. We need Shota to be good for us. So we gotta work at helping him be better."

With Imanaga being a staple of the Cubs' rotation over the last several seasons, the leash is long. Counsell is also right: The advanced stats could be significantly worse, as Imanaga is still carrying a 24.0 percent K rate, 29.2 percent whiff rate, and 35.0 percent chase rate. The latter two rank inside the league's 80th percentile or better.

Imanaga has also long been elite at limiting trips to first base. And, heck, his hard-hit percentage also isn't nearly as bad as one might think! The problem is that when Imanaga misses ... he misses badly. A big reason for this is an over-reliance on a low 90s four-seamer. When the pitch doesn't rise in the way he wants, it's typically hit a LONG way.

How exactly do the Cubs plan to address that? Again, we're talking about a long-standing issue. It doesn't necessarily feel like something that can be addressed during this tight race to the postseason.

Now, does that mean Imanaga should be stripped entirely from the rotation? Not necessarily. Counsell may just have to approach his workload differently. It was only two starts ago that he had a very tight leash on Imanaga after he allowed an early 2 runs. Perhaps yanking him early and going with someone like Colin Rea, a healthy Edward Cabrera, or a called-up Javier Assad could be the way to go.

It's also one thing not to consider moving Imanaga out of the rotation now, but this conversation is going to come up again in a matter of weeks. The Cubs are going to have to tighten things for their presumed Wild Card series. At this rate, it feels safe to say that Imanaga will NOT be one of the projected starters. Kevin Gausman, Clay Holmes, and Matthew Boyd are likely to be the go-to arms.

Then, if the Cubs are lucky enough to clinch a seven-game set, there could very well be a case to give David Peterson a start over Imanaga. The ground-ball pitcher has been borderline excellent since coming over from the Mets. Even if he may be more comfortable with a bullpen role, Counsell will simply have to go with the most trustworthy arm.

All of that to say: Imanaga may not be going anywhere right now, and this may be the right move. But this conversation also isn't going anywhere as the postseason looms. The Cubs are going to have to make some tough decisions, and Imanaga needs to give them a reason to stick with him in his next handful of outings.

Sign up for our free newsletter to stay up-to-date with all things Chicago Cubs.

Add us as a preferred source on Google