CHICAGO -- Given the way Shota Imanaga walked off the field in Milwaukee on Sunday, Cubs manager Craig Counsell felt a trip to the injured list was the likely outcome for the left-handed starter. That step officially arrived for Imanaga prior to Monday’s game against the Giants.
Already down rotation leader Justin Steele for the season, the Cubs placed Imanaga on the 15-day IL due to a left hamstring strain, removing the lefty from the staff for at least a few weeks. Imaging showed a mild strain and Counsell said he was “optimistic” about Imanaga’s recovery timeline following the pitcher’s meeting with a team doctor.
“We’re going to be cautious and make sure that he’s back to 100 percent,” Counsell said after the Cubs' 9-2 win over the Giants. “But all in all, pretty good news.”
With Imanaga shelved for the time being, the North Siders recalled righty Gavin Hollowell from Triple-A Iowa to add an extra arm to the bullpen.
Counsell said Imanaga’s return would likely extend beyond two weeks, which echoed what Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said pregame on Monday.
“The most important thing with that kind of injury,” Hoyer said, “is to get him back and healthy for the remainder of the season, not just to get him back. You talk about returning to play, versus returning to your previous form. That’s the most important thing, and it may take some time to get there.”
Imanaga injured his leg while running to cover first base in the sixth inning of Sunday’s 4-0 loss to the Brewers. Through eight starts this season, Imanaga had a 2.82 ERA with 34 strikeouts and 14 walks in 44 2/3 innings.
The Cubs have not yet announced who will step into Imanaga’s spot in the rotation, and Counsell noted that the team will use the next few days to discuss the situation. With an off-day coming up on Thursday, Counsell said the Cubs have a few ways they can approach Saturday’s road game against the Mets (Imanaga’s next scheduled turn).
After Steele’s injury, the Cubs moved right-hander Colin Rea out of the bullpen and into the rotation. Chicago could consider doing a similar transition with veteran righty Chris Flexen, who is currently in the relief corps, but has starting experience. Another possibility for Saturday would be to utilize multiple relievers for that game in New York.
Hoyer said the Cubs would likely try to avoid skipping Imanaga’s turn with the off-day and using a four-man rotation until a fifth arm is needed again.
“One thing we’re cognizant of,” Hoyer said, “is I think you talk about, ‘Oh, do you want to just not have a fifth starter for a period, because you have off-days?’ Well, that means you’re pushing those other starters harder. So, there’s a balance between using those off-days to optimally line up your pitching in mid-May, or you can kind of look at the length of the season and say, ‘Hey, [we’re] better off to give those starters some extra time.’”
Lefty Jordan Wicks is another contingency option on the 40-man roster, but he has had mixed results since returning to Triple-A Iowa this season.
Another option would be top pitching prospect Cade Horton, who is MLB Pipeline’s No. 2 Cubs prospect and No. 46 on the Top 100 list. Horton, 23, has a 1.24 ERA through six starts for Triple-A Iowa, but the righty was limited to 34 1/3 innings total last year due to injury. Both Counsell and Hoyer said Horton is an option for Saturday, but there is still plenty to discuss.
“We’ll get a sense of time frame and prognosis,” Hoyer said, “and then we’ll sit down with Craig and the coaching staff and we’ll get a sense of how we want to proceed. Obviously, Cade’s an option. He’s one of several options and we’ll talk through the right way to go forward.”
Hoyer was also asked if he might look to the trade market for possible rotation help.
“There’s phone calls going on,” Hoyer said. “I think, for sure, you make the phone calls, but I still look at this as, 'These are the internal [solutions] months,' and we have to solve this internally.”