MESA, Ariz. — Chicago Cubs veteran catcher Yan Gomes settled behind the plate Wednesday, getting eyes on Shota Imanaga as the left-hander stood on a bullpen mound at the team’s complex.
It marked the early stages of their pitcher-catcher relationship and gave Gomes, known for how well he manages a pitching staff, a hands-on look at Imanaga’s stuff.
Imanaga’s elite fastball movement makes the pitch play up more than the low-90s velocity might indicate. Gomes mentioned to pitching coach Tommy Hottovy after the bullpen that he felt himself squeezing his mitt where he thought the ball would be and wasn’t cleanly catching Imanaga’s fastballs. The pitch gets up on the plate quicker than assumed.
Gomes’ anecdote backed up what the Cubs’ data on Imanaga’s fastball showed.
“Seeing his stuff, it’s come as advertised,” Hottovy said. “He’s got a really unique fastball, just trying to talk through ways we think he can continue to use it in effective ways and then just seeing the rest of the repertoire — he’s got a complete repertoire, a really complete package of a pitcher.”
Imanaga, 30, gives the Cubs another lefty in the rotation, and though like Justin Steele he is known for the distinct movement on his fastball, their pitch characteristics create separate challenges for opposing hitters. When comparing the two pitchers, Hottovy explained that while they possess similar arm paths and release heights, they couldn’t be more different with how their fastballs function. Steele utilizes the side of the baseball and works through it to create cut ride with the pitch. Imanaga gets behind the baseball and pulls down more to generate his extreme vertical movement.
“It’s something that will be really fun to watch that evolve,” Hottovy said. “Obviously you always talk about how the rotation is going to work and you don’t want to have guys who have similar stuff, well it is very unique, very different fastballs.”
The Cubs want to find a balance between letting Imanaga keep doing what he’s done well versus trying to make tweaks and help him get to the next level. As Imanaga gets used to his new organization, Hottovy equated it to drinking through a firehouse as he takes it all in.
“For us, it’s our eagerness to want to help and show him those things and his eagerness to want to learn,” Hottovy said. “It’s almost like we have to remind each other we have time, let’s get your feet under you, check a lot of boxes, get you into some competition.
“Again, he’s a good pitcher. He’s had success, he’s going to have success and if there’s ways that we can help take a couple of things up an extra notch then we’re going to be willing to talk through that and help him there. But still, he’s a really good pitcher and we want to make sure we hone in on that right away.”
As Imanaga gets to know his teammates, he’s absorbing as much as he can by watching them, specifically mentioning Steele and veteran Kyle Hendricks.
Among Hendricks’ first impressions of Imanaga: how well he speaks English. Hendricks said he has been super impressed by Imanaga’s grasp of the language — they’re able to have conversations without an interpreter around.
“He understands what we’re asking and he’s locked in, dialed in, so obviously a super-smart guy,” Hendricks said. “A really good personality, always smiling and happy.”
The cultural adjustments can be daunting when making the move from Japan to the U.S., but Imanaga also needs to get used to four days off between starts, one fewer than starters get in Nippon Professional Baseball. Imanaga likes to throw a lot, which hadn’t been an issue with the extra day of rest and recovery built into his Yokohoma BayStars schedule.
Communication and honesty between Imanaga and the coaching staff on how he is feeling will be vital. Imanaga told Hottovy that if they think he is throwing too much to tell him, explaining, “You’re going to have to step in front of me a little bit and make sure that I’m on track there.” Hottovy reiterated that the Cubs can be creative with how they integrate Imanaga into the season by capitalizing on the off days, including three within the first two weeks of the season.
The Cubs will be strategic and look at the big picture with how they help Imanaga in his transition.
“There’s going to be a point he’s going to throw in a normal five-day routine, and he’s going to have to do that,” Hottovy said. “But if we can limit the amount of time he does that, or at least that he doesn’t have to do it two times in a row, then I think we can we can maximize it.”
