Japanese pitcher Shota Imanaga of the Chicago Cubs has been named the No. 1 starting pitcher in Major League Baseball’s Power Rankings.
MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball, released its updated Top 10 Starting Pitcher Power Rankings on Wednesday (June 23).
“Our panel was asked to evaluate the relative merits of the Cubs’ Shota Imanaga, who has made a successful transition from NPB in Japan to the majors,” MLB.com said. “Detroit’s Tarik Skubal, who made a promising return from injury last year, is using his nasty pitching arsenal to fuel a breakout at age 27. Philadelphia’s Ranger Suarez is a seven-year veteran who is riding a tremendous winning streak. 안전놀이터 추천 There were no easy decisions, but ultimately, only one could be No. 1.”
Imanaga, Scoobal, and Suarez were in a three-way tie for the top spot.
Imanaga (previously ranked No. 4), Scoobal (previously ranked No. 2), and Suarez (previously ranked No. 5).
MLB.com writes, “As Imanaga continued to score zero runs in game after game, our panel’s reaction shifted from skepticism to acceptance to outright embrace. The 30-year-old left-hander’s performance thus far has been nothing short of magical, but his four-seam/splitter combo literally looks like one to opponents, and the results can’t be ignored.”
“No other starting pitcher has started his major league career the way Imanaga has. (5-0, 9 starts, 0.84 ERA). Imanaga, 토토사이트 추천 who debuted as the No. 4 starting pitcher in our previous survey, was unable to hold onto the top spot this time around.”
Imanaga has continued his phenomenal performance in his first year in the Major Leagues. In his first start, he threw six innings of two-hit ball against the Colorado Rockies, striking out nine and walking none, and has five shutouts in nine games. In nine starts, he is 5-0 with a 0.84 ERA. In 53⅔ innings pitched, he has allowed 40 hits, nine walks, 58 strikeouts, and a 0.91 WHIP.
His 0.84 ERA in his first nine major league starts is the lowest since 1913, when ERAs were officially recorded in the major leagues. The previous low was 0.91 in Fernando Valenzuela’s nine-game debut for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1981.
How Imanaga set the record.
In his eight-year Japanese NPB career from 2016 to last year, Imanaga went 64-50-4 with a 3.18 ERA in 165 games (1002⅔ innings). Imanaga, who pitched for the Yokohama DeNA BayStars until last year, signed a five-year, $80 million contract with the Cubs ahead of this season.
He will make $9.25 million this year and $13.25 million in 2025. The Cubs have a club option for the 2026 season. The club option is worth $20 million in 2026, $20 million in 2027, and $17 million in 2027. If the team doesn’t exercise the option, he has a player option. You can earn $15 million in 2026 and $15 million in 2027.
That’s a total of $53 million guaranteed over four years, with a maximum of five years and $80 million if the Cubs decide to pick up the option.
Meanwhile, second-round pick Scoobal is 6-1 with a 2.25 ERA. Suarez, ranked third, is 9-0 with a 1.36 ERA. 카지노사이트 Philadelphia’s Zack Wheeler (5-3, 2.52 ERA) was selected fourth and the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Tyler Glasnow (6-3, 3.09 ERA) was selected fifth.