Japanese Hurler Makes Rare Team History in Chicago Cubs Debut

Lefty Shota Imanaga, making his first career Major League start on Monday, took a no-hitter into the sixth inning for the Chicago Cubs. With that, he became just the second Cubs' pitcher in the last 50 years to have a no-hitter through five in his first start.

Apr 1, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Shota Imanaga (18) pitches / David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

It was quite a Chicago Cubs debut on Monday afternoon for new pitcher Shota Imanaga.

Imanaga, who was signed this offseason from Japan, tossed 6.0 brilliant innings as the Cubs beat the Colorado Rockies 5-0. In the win, Imanaga allowed no runs on two hits. He walked none and struck out nine. He didn't allow his first hit until the sixth inning and with that, he joined some very rare Cubs' history.

Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

Shota Imanaga is the 2nd Cubs pitcher with a 5+ inning no-hit bid in his MLB debut in at least the last 50 seasons, joining:

5/16/96 Amaury Telemaco: 5 2/3 IP bid

Shota Imanaga is the 2nd Cubs pitcher with a 5+ inning no-hit bid in his MLB debut in at least the last 50 seasons, joining:

5/16/96 Amaury Telemaco: 5 2/3 IP bid

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) April 1, 2024

Imanaga signed a four-year deal in the offseason with the Cubs with the hope that he can help replace the production of Marcus Stroman, who left in free agency to sign with the New York Yankees. So far, so good. He'll have to shoulder the load further since ace Justin Steele is now on the injured list and could miss more than a month of action.

Offensively, the Cubs were paced in the win by Christopher Morel, who had two hits. Cody Bellinger went 1-for-4 with two RBI as well.

The win moves the Cubs to 2-2 on the young season while the loss dropped the Rockies to 1-4.

The two teams will play again on Tuesday night with first pitch scheduled for 7:40 p.m. ET. Left-hander Kyle Freeland (0-1, 38.57 ERA) pitches for Colorado while Javier Assad pitches for Chicago. It's his first start of the year.

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