Shu014dta Imanaga went into Thursday’s start having struck out 10 batters to just two walks over his first two appearances. Not bad for just 5.1 innings of work. The only problem is that he’d also allowed five earned runs on seven hits, two of which left the yard. Finding out how to tweak his pitch mix and philosophy, specifically getting away from Japan’s lower strike zone, may make all the difference between stardom and mediocrity.
If his latest outing is a clue, Imanaga is well on his way to getting things dialed in. The lefty struck out nine with no walks and no runs on three hits over 4.