The Chicago Cubs have become one of the best teams in Major League Baseball this season. They have sprinted out to a 21-14 record and own a three-game lead in the National League Central division.
A great start with one caveat
This start seems especially phenomenal when you consider the opposition that the Cubs have faced thus far this season. Their March/April schedule was the toughest stretch that any team will face all season, based on last season’s winning percentage. Despite that, the Cubs ended April with an 18-13 record, and have beaten up on their early May schedule with a 3-1 record so far this month.
The Catalyst for the Cubs’ dominance has certainly been their offense, which is one of the best in Baseball. Chicago’s offense currently leads the Majors in Batting Average (.262), Runs (208), Stolen Bases (45), and Hits (323).
The Cubs have enjoyed breakout seasons from Pete Crow-Armstrong, Michael Busch, Carson Kelly, and even Seiya Suzuki, who is reaching his ceiling at the plate.
Still, despite all the offensive success, the Cubs have one major problem: Their rotation.
Injuries in the rotation
With the season-ending injury to Justin Steele earlier this season, the Cubs staff has had to band together to scrap by with starts from pitchers who are ideally relievers. Despite losing arguably their top arm in the rotation, the Cubs have rallied to post a 3.44 ERA amongst their starts, which is the fifth-best mark in baseball.
But unfortunately, their task just became a lot harder after a recent injury to star pitcher Shota Imanaga.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Cubs manager Craig Counsell provided an update on Shota Imanaga.
“Yeah, he did kind of running over to first base,” Counsell said. “Probably do some imaging to see what’s going on. He’s never had any lower body muscle strains, so he’s a little unsure of what the feeling means, but he felt something for sure, so we’ll just get it checked out tomorrow and go from there.”
Imanaga injured his hamstring while running over to cover first base on an infield single. Interestingly, Imanaga had to be removed from his last start as well with a hamstring injury, but that seemed to be much milder. At the time, it was seen as a hydration/rest issue. But perhaps that was a precursor to a more serious hamstring injury.
Imanaga tossed 173.1 innings in 29 starts for Chicago last season, and durability was never an issue.
What’s next for Chicago after Shota’s injury?
While his timeline is not yet known, Cubs fans can expect Imanaga to miss at least a few starts. Last season, Steele missed about a month with a similar injury, so early estimates predict a similar timeline for Imanaga. Thinking optimistically, this injury has a much lower chance of being a hindrance to his career long term than any sort of arm/shoulder injury. Still, if not taken care of properly, this injury could send his season into a downward spiral very quickly.
Regardless of his return, Chicago’s offense must stay hot as they prepare to take on the San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, and Cincinnati Reds in the coming weeks.