Shōta Imanaga Likely Has at Least 2 More Rehab Starts Before Returning

Shōta Imanaga pitched two innings in a start for the Cubs’ Arizona Complex League team on Monday as he begins to ramp back up in competitive settings. He allowed one hit and struck out four in the first official action in his rehab from a hamstring strain suffered on May 4. Though the Cubs haven’t laid out many specifics on the plan for the lefty, pitching coach Tommy Hottovy told 670 The Score’s Mully and Haugh on Tuesday that he should make another rehab start later this week.

As Craig Counsell shared with Spiegel and Holmes later in the day, Imanaga will probably need at least one more outing after that to get him ready for Chicago.

“Shōta has got a couple more starts before you’re going to see him in Chicago,” Counsell explained. “That’s because, as a starter, you’ve got to go through this process where you’re lengthened out and your arm recovers.”

We’re probably looking at the last full week in June at the very earliest when it comes to Imanaga being activated from the IL, and that’s if everything continues to go well with his rehab. The Cubs have managed pretty well without him, but getting him back in the rotation will be a huge boost as they wrap up a very full June and head into the All-Star Break