The Cubs didn't have much luck with Tsuyoshi Wada, their first starting pitcher from Nippon Pro Baseball (Kyuji Fujikawa was the Cubs' first foray into NPB; the reliever didn't work out either).
Other teams have had success bringing pitchers over from Japan. One of those pitchers is Hisashi Iwakuma, who has had four good years with the Seattle Mariners. One of the best things about Iwakuma is his WHIP -- career 1.082. The only active pitcher who has as many or more career innings than Iwakuma (653u2153) and a lower WHIP is Clayton Kershaw.