Shu014dta Imanaga‘s sweeper was his best pitch this past season, so it makes sense that his camp is putting some spin on his second-half performance as he heads to free agency. While there are still some procedural details to work out that could keep the lefty in Chicago for 2026 and even further, the Cubs declined their three-year extension option and he turned down a $15 million guarantee for next season.
He can’t negotiate with other teams until after 4pm CT on Thursday, which is also the deadline for teams to extend qualifying offers to eligible players, but his reps already appear to be burnishing his image.