Worry Looms Over Cubs as Pitcher Exits Start Early with Hamstring Injury
The Chicago Cubs dropped the final game of their weekend series to the Milwaukee Brewers, but their most significant loss of the day may not have come on the scoreboard. Star starting pitcher Shota Imanaga left the game early after seeming to aggravate his hamstring trying to cover first base. This is the second consecutive start that Imanaga has had to exit early. He exited Tuesday’s game in Pittsburgh early with a lower-body injury as well. Is it time to be concerned about Imanaga’s long-term health?
The short answer is yes, there is obvious concern for a number of reasons. The main one being that this is the second consecutive start that Imanaga has had to leave early, so there is a legitimate possibility there is some lingering injury here. However, the more concerning part about that is that manager Craig Counsell reported after the game that this was not the same injury that took the lefty out of Tuesday’s game in Pittsburgh. Sunday’s hamstring injury seems to be a new area of pain, and also appears to be more severe.
The other major effect that this could have on the Cubs, if Imanaga is out for an extended period of time, is that they will have lost their top two starting pitching options just over a month into the regular season. Justin Steele is already out of the season with an elbow injury, so losing Imanaga for any period of time would be costly, given the lack of pitching depth to begin with. The back end of this rotation would really be put to the test if Imanaga is forced to miss multiple starts. If Imanaga does end up finding himself on the injured list, there would more than likely be a move to call up a pitching prospect from the minor leagues, which could likely be the Cubs’ top prospect, Cade Horton. Imanaga is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday morning in Chicago to get an official diagnosis on his hamstring. Whatever the diagnosis ends up being, the Cubs will be forced to act quickly as their upcoming schedule only leaves them with one off day, which will be on Thursday, over the next 10 days.
