Mithrandir Metrics
Player Chicago Cubs Refreshed Sep 3 06:00 AM ET
Player profile / Chicago Cubs

Shota Imanaga

P · Bats/Throws L/L · 5' 10", 175 lb · Age 33

Cards
28
Modules
1
Live Δ
yes
Club Chicago Cubs Position P Roster Current MLB team Status Healthy / active roster
Traditional line

Season by season

3D Pitch Lab Projections
WLERAGGSSVIPSOWHIP
20241532.9129290173.11741.02
2025983.7325250144.21170.99
20268104.0127270150.11481.14
3 Seasons32213.5281810468.14391.05
At a glance

Season percentile report

The headline weighs outcome stats (xwOBA, barrels); each bar averages its full strip group below. 100 = best in MLB.

2026-09-03
70
Pitching
percentile
Pitching9 metrics
58
Arsenal5 metrics
56
Rolling projection

Preseason / current pace / Bayesian update

Rolling bands shrink current-season signal toward the preseason prior until the sample earns more weight.

2026-09-03
ERA preseason3.84
ERA current pace4.01
ERA rolling p503.96
Observed weight73%
ERA
2.96 3.44 3.96 4.49 4.97
FIP
4.11 4.34 4.60 4.85 5.09
K%
21.6% 22.5% 23.6% 24.6% 25.6%
BB%
4.5% 5.0% 5.5% 6.1% 6.6%
Live percentile strip

Current traits vs projection tick

100th = best in MLB.

2026-09-03
Pitching · percentile strip
WHIP1.15
79
ERA4.01
50
BB%5.8%
91
K%24.5%
67 +25 vs proj
xwOBA allowed0.301
65 +20 vs proj
Barrel allowed10.0%
15
Fastball velo91.4
10
Hard-hit allowed37.0%
61
Whiff%28.5%
88 +40 vs proj
Mithrandir+

Stuff+ and arsenal context

How nasty this pitcher's stuff grades in our pitch-level model. Missing coverage is shown explicitly.

2026-09-03
Fastball Stuff+105
72
Mithrandir Stuff+104
68
Slider Stuff+103
55
Curveball Stuff+103
62
Sinker Stuff+98
23
Rolling form chart

xwOBA allowed snapshot line

Live snapshot series; true 50/100 PA windows require PA-level logs

12 snapshots
Mithrandir Metrics ROLLING XWOBA LINE Parameterized Mithrandir chart rendered as SVG for templates and exports. season=2026 Rolling xwOBA allowed Imanaga, Shota · Live snapshot series; true 50/100 PA windows require PA-level logs LG AVG 0.313 0.301 2026-08-23: 0.3022026-08-24: 0.3022026-08-25: 0.3032026-08-26: 0.3032026-08-27: 0.3032026-08-28: 0.3032026-08-29: 0.3032026-08-30: 0.3032026-08-31: 0.3012026-09-01: 0.3012026-09-02: 0.3012026-09-03: 0.301 2026-08-23 2026-09-03 xwOBA allowed MITHRANDIR · CHARTS
Optimization map

Arsenal optimization map

Pitch-shape context from this pitcher’s current arsenal snapshot. Hover a pitch to inspect usage, movement, and bat-missing context.

6Pitches 2026Season 41%Top usage
ride armside gloveside +Arsenal gap +Shape contrast
Zone profile

Aggregate zone heatmap

Aggregate zone metrics from seasonal Statcast leaderboards.

Mithrandir Metrics ZONE HEATMAP Parameterized Mithrandir chart rendered as SVG for templates and exports. season=2026 Pitch Zone Profile Imanaga, Shota · Aggregate zone metrics; not pitch-by-pitch locations Edge: 38%38%Zone: 46%46%Whiff: 28%28%Called strike: 14%14%First pitch strike: 46%46%Hard hit allowed: 37%37% Dashed border = aggregate mixed-batter zone proxy MITHRANDIR · CHARTS
Pitch arsenal

Usage mix, movement map, and Stuff+ composition

2026 pitch-level arsenal aggregates; current season takes over after 100 tracked pitches across at least 2 pitch types. Descriptive pitch-type Stuff+ composition. Not a promoted predictive metric.

Watch the pitches in 3D →

2026
Mithrandir Metrics PITCH ARSENAL DONUT Parameterized Mithrandir chart rendered as SVG for templates and exports. Pitch Arsenal Imanaga, Shota · 2026 arsenal snapshot 4-Seam Fastball: 41.2%Split-Finger: 32.9%Sweeper: 14.8%Sinker: 6.4%Curveball: 2.6%Slider: 2.1% FF41% · 92 mphprimary pitch FF 41%FS 33%ST 15%SI 6%CU 3%SL 2% MITHRANDIR · CHARTS
Mithrandir Metrics PITCH MOVEMENT Parameterized Mithrandir chart rendered as SVG for templates and exports. Pitch Arsenal Imanaga, Shota · 2026 arsenal snapshot 18″36″54″72″ 4-Seam Fastball: 41% usage, 6″ horizontal break, 15″ drop, 91.6 mphFF92 mphSplit-Finger: 33% usage, 9″ horizontal break, 34″ drop, 82.9 mphFS83 mphSweeper: 15% usage, 4″ horizontal break, 42″ drop, 81.1 mphST81 mphSinker: 6% usage, 3″ horizontal break, 24″ drop, 90.2 mphSI90 mphCurveball: 3% usage, 8″ horizontal break, 63″ drop, 74.5 mphCU74 mphSlider: 2% usage, 0″ horizontal break, 29″ drop, 86.3 mphSL86 mph less drop ↑ more drop ↓ · horizontal break ↔ · dot size = usage · break incl. gravity MITHRANDIR · CHARTS
PitchUsagePitchesStuff+Status
FB 64.5% 711 105 qualified
SL 24.4% 269 103 qualified
SI 8.0% 88 98 limited sample
CB 3.2% 35 103 limited sample
Method note

Renamed from the attempted Kirby Index after audit; true Kirby requires release-angle trajectory data.

Reference layer

Current snapshot

Age33
Height5' 10"
Weight175 lb
Debut2024-04-01
Live layer

Delta / regression

ERA Δ+0.14
K% Δ+0.036

positive regression

Regression watch

Unlucky so far. Better days ahead.

1.6σ gap
wOBA-against (actual)0.341
xwOBA-against (deserved)0.301

Imanaga’s wOBA-against sits at 0.341, but the quality of contact underneath says it should be 0.301 — a gap of 0.040, 1.6 standard deviations from the MLB norm over 159 IP. The results have been worse than the process deserves; as the sample grows, expect the numbers to climb back toward the underlying level.

Mithrandir coverage

Module shelf

ModuleCardsLatestSignal
Pitching282026-08-30Four-Seam Fastball played up through FF/FS tunnel quality
Projection links / recent games

Available detail

Pitcher Projections 202620.9% K | 3.86 ERAProjection
2026-04-15 @ PHI1 ER / 11 K6.0 IP
2026-04-05 @ CLE1 ER / 4 K5.0 IP
2026-03-29 vs WSH4 ER / 7 K5.0 IP