Cubs (Imanaga) vs Brewers (Ashby): 10/6/25, 8:08pm

[Jason Ross]

My assumption is that he's dropped the arm slot to give his sweeper better run. But it's resulted in a worse Shota.

[Connor McConnor]

2 minutes ago, Jason Ross said:

Correct. Zero chance. He's still a good pitcher, even at $16m AAV. And I think the issues are quite fixable. His arm slot is about 4-5 degrees lower. It's creates more arm side ride (for Shota against a RHH, pitches that tail bail into the zone) and has lowered it's elevation.

The outcome is that his fastball is tailing both into the zone more and not getting the elevation. High ride fastballs are killer in the top-third but horrible in the bottom two-thirds. It's a narrow path to live, but high ride fastballs kill the launch angle of hitters. But only if you elevate. A flatter arm path has killed his fastball a bit.

Man, you are really optimistic about pitchers.

[soccer10k]

15 minutes ago, squally1313 said:

Chet Holmgrem before puberty ass

Fun fact! Misiorowski is actually a month older than Holmgren.

[BobbyD3]

[Stratos]

Getting major Fortnite energy from Misiorowski.

[SpongeWorthy]

how many pitches can mis go? he is not lacking for confidence rn 

[muntjack]

Why do I feel ill?

[Irrelevant Dude]

So we finally get an exciting fireballing 102 mph throwing reliever in Palencia, just in time for other teams to up the ante to 104 mph guys.

[chibears55]

3 minutes ago, BobbyD3 said:

Am I the only one that does not want the Cubs brass to pick up that 20 million dollar Shota option?  

Depends on how he pitches the next 2 seasons, and what they have in the rotation and potentially waiting to come up from the minors.

He'll be 34 in 2028, so if he not getting it done, it an easy choice to let him go

 

[Wilson A2000]

Why would you not throw it right down the middle to Shaw? 

[Rex Buckingham]

this ump is struggling

[s2obed]

2 minutes ago, SpongeWorthy said:

how many pitches can mis go? he is not lacking for confidence rn 

He’s a natural starting pitcher, I could see him going long if no damage is done. 

[squally1313]

Just now, Wilson A2000 said:

Why would you not throw it right down the middle to Shaw? 

He tried 

[Jason Ross]

Just now, Connor McConnor said:

Man, you are really optimistic about pitchers.

Not optimistic, but the pathway forward becomes clear when you data dive. There are obvious things that work well and things that don't. And we can usually diagnose issues. 

With Shota, the fastball shape is worse and we can see it's running more on the arm side. We can also see the drop in the arm slot. We also have enough data on what pitches with that much IVB do; they're horsefeathers nasty if you throw them on the upper third - they directly attack launch angle and essentially eliminate the hit box for a hitter trying to elevate the pitch (thus, weak flys). 

He doesn't have any obvious signs of injury so the issue becomes mechanical. 

I don't think Shota is like, the ERA monster he was through June last year. I do think that the best version of Shota Imanaga, at around a 40-degree arm slot and throwing his fastball up and in on the hands is pitcher who belongs in the middle of a rotation of a playoff team. 

I also think the Cubs do a good job with working with pitchers. When you add it together, I think Shota should be fine. 

[Jason Ross]

2 minutes ago, chibears55 said:

Depends on how he pitches the next 2 seasons, and what they have in the rotation and potentially waiting to come up from the minors.

He'll be 34 in 2028, so if he not getting it done, it an easy choice to let him go

 

They have to make the decision this offseason.

[SpongeWorthy]

Just now, Jason Ross said:

Not optimistic, but the pathway forward becomes clear when you data dive. There are obvious things that work well and things that don't. And we can usually diagnose issues. 

With Shota, the fastball shape is worse and we can see it's running more on the arm side. We can also see the drop in the arm slot. We also have enough data on what pitches with that much IVB do; they're horsefeathers nasty if you throw them on the upper third - they directly attack launch angle and essentially eliminate the hit box for a hitter trying to elevate the pitch (thus, weak flys). 

He doesn't have any obvious signs of injury so the issue becomes mechanical. 

I don't think Shota is like, the ERA monster he was through June last year. I do think that the best version of Shota Imanaga, at around a 40-degree arm slot and throwing his fastball up and in on the hands is pitcher who belongs in the middle of a rotation of a playoff team. 

I also think the Cubs do a good job with working with pitchers. When you add it together, I think Shota should be fine. 

ok so why hasnt Counsell et al fixed it by now, this game was pretty important 

[Hankchifan]

7 minutes ago, s2obed said:

I’m putting Imanaga in the pen if we advance. 
 

I wonder what Assad or Rea could’ve given us. 

Assad should have been in the rotation of this Brewers series.  He could not have been worse than Imanaga’s home run giving machine.  While I am at it, Happ should be hitting lower in the lineup, and Busch should be starting in all games even against left handed pitchers.  Too many dingers to leave on the table.  Counsell is too in love with lefty righty matchups regardless. IMO.

[chibears55]

1 minute ago, Jason Ross said:

They have to make the decision this offseason.

I was looking at Cots, they just show

15/15/ option 

They'll definitely pick up 2026 and 2027

[muntjack]

Is this the part where we shut them down but it's too late? 

[Illiterate Scholar]

The club option for Imanaga, if picked up, would be 3/57, no?

[squally1313]

2-3-4 facing Mis for the second time seems pretty crucial. Uribe and Megill aren’t Miller and Suarez but they’re still good. 

[Irrelevant Dude]

Just now, Jason Ross said:

I also think the Cubs do a good job with working with pitchers. When you add it together, I think Shota should be fine. 

You are probably right, as long as the top of the rotation can stay healthy.  He was never going to be a real top of rotation starter, but that isn't what he was signed for.

[Soul]

Just now, muntjack said:

Is this the part where we shut them down but it's too late? 

Perhaps not even that much

[Rex Buckingham]

I bet that hurt like horsefeathers

[George Hayduke]

2 minutes ago, Illiterate Scholar said:

The club option for Imanaga, if picked up, would be 3/57, no?

Correct