No pitcher in Major League Baseball has gotten off to a more dominant start than Cubs pitcher Shota Imanaga. In fact, almost no pitcher in the history of baseball has gotten off to a more dominant start than Imanaga.
So it was no surprise when MLB announced Friday that the lefty had earned the NL Rookie of the Month award for April.
Imanaga posted a 0.98 ERA and a 4-0 record in the first month of the season. He allowed just three earned runs with three walks and 28 strikeouts in 27.2 innings pitched.
His mastery continued into the month of May with his sixth start on Wednesday when he posted seven shutout innings against the New York Mets, striking out seven batters and walking one in a 1-0 victory
According to MLB stat guru Sarah Langs, Imanaga is only the second pitcher in the last 70 years to post an ERA of 0.80 or lower in his first six career starts, joining Los Angeles Dodgers sensation Fernando Valenzuela, who sparked “Fernandomania” in 1981 when he made his debut in Southern California.
He's also one of only 10 pitchers in the live-ball era to post an ERA of 1.00 or less while throwing at least 30 innings in his first six career starts, with Zach Duke the last to achieve the feat in 2005.
In fact, Imanaga’s 0.78 ERA is the lowest a pitcher has put up through a minimum of 30 innings pitched in six starts since Boston’s Dave Ferris posted a 0.50 ERA in 1945.
Chicago Cubs
He will next take the ball against the San Diego Padres at Wrigley next week.
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