MILWAUKEE — Normally, left-hander Shota Imanaga’s start day landing on the last game of a high-profile series, when the Cubs needed a win to avoid a sweep, would’ve seemed ideal. He has been a stopper for the Cubs for two seasons.
On Wednesday, however, his previous start cast a shadow. Imanaga had bounced back well from shaky outings before, of course. And when healthy this year, he has been a rotation leader. But since returning from the injured list late last month, he has had ups and downs.
“My previous start, my pitching mechanics weren’t great,” Imanaga said. “So I dove in, talked about that with my pitching coaches and made the adjustment.”
As the Cubs beat the Brewers 10-3, Imanaga appeared to be back on track. And, after two ugly losses to begin the series, so did the Cubs in their last game before the trade deadline.
“Shota’s stuff was where we want it to be,” manager Craig Counsell said.
His start was marred slightly by Brewers catcher William Contreras’ two solo home runs. But those blasts accounted for almost all of the damage against Imanaga (8-4), who struck out eight and allowed five hits in five innings.
Milwaukee’s only other run scored on Sal Frelick’s sacrifice fly in the fifth inning.
Imanaga’s mechanical issues showed up last week in a seven-run, 12-hit outing against the White Sox , his sixth start back after a hamstring injury he suffered in Milwaukee in early May. It was a step back from dominant seven-inning performances against the Yankees and Red Sox.
“When you’re dealing with a lower-body injury, the delivery inconsistencies might show up a little bit more often,” pitching coach Tommy Hottovy said in a recent conversation with the Sun-Times. “So in the game the other day, he kind of got punched in the mouth right away, then went into survival mode and kind of forgot about some of the cues and the things that were making his delivery really good.”
The pitching coaches did a deep dive, and they noticed that Imanaga’s arm path was a little longer than usual and his delivery in general slowed down a tick, affecting the shape of his fastball, Hottovy said. Instead, they wanted him to drive through his back leg with intent.
Against the Brewers, Imanaga’s fastball velocity ticked up from his last start, and its horizontal and vertical break were more in line with his season averages — all good signs.
The victory was a necessary bounce-back for him and the team as a whole.
“When our back is against the wall, I think we do a very good job of coming out on top,” center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong said.
A solid defensive effort was headlined by Seiya Suzuki, who made two highlight-reel catches in left field, one siding in and one ranging toward the line.
The offense was clicking, even against two-time All-Star Freddy Peralta (12-5). Cubs leadoff hitter Michael Busch got things started with a home run on the first pitch of the game. Kyle Tucker, who has had a down month, reached base four times. Crow-Armstrong hit two doubles. Moises Ballesteros drove in three runs with his first career extra-base hit. Ian Happ, who was available off the bench despite fouling a ball off his leg Tuesday, hit a homer in the ninth inning.
The series loss — and the level of play in the first two games — was a disappointment. But the Cubs avoided disaster by at least taking one game, by a lopsided margin. They have five more games against the Brewers, who have a one-game lead in the National League Central, in a series at Wrigley Field in three weeks.
“It’s going to be a fun two months,” Counsell said. “It’s going to be a challenge in two months. There’s a really long way to go.
‘‘We needed this game today, for sure, and the guys delivered a big effort.”
