Shota Imanaga is staying in Chicago.
The Japanese left-hander accepted a qualifying offer to return to the Cubs on Tuesday rather than test free agency, the team announced.
The decision comes just days after it appeared the two sides were headed in opposite directions this winter.
Earlier this offseason, the Cubs declined a three-year option that would’ve paid Imanaga $57.75 million over the 2026-28 seasons.
Imanaga, 32, then declined a $15.25 million player option for the 2026 season.
He will now make $22.025 million in 2026 before getting a shot at the open market next winter.
“It felt like a no-brainer for us,” Cubs general manager Carter Hawkins said earlier this month of giving the southpaw the qualifying offer. “We like Shota a lot. Obviously, we enjoy having him … I know it was a complicated contract structure.”
Imanaga came over from Japan before the 2024 season, signing a four-year, $53 million deal with options.
His big league career got off to an excellent start, as he posted a 2.91 ERA over 173 1/3 innings and finished fourth in the National League Rookie of the Year voting and fifth in the NL Cy Young race in 2024.
This past season, Imanaga was pitching at near Cy Young levels during the first half before a shaky performance down the stretch, finishing the year with a 3.74 ERA.
The former All-Star is one of four players to accept the qualifying offer this week.
Yankees outfielder Trent Grisham took the QO to return to The Bronx.
Brewers starter Brandon Woodruff and Tigers infielder Gleyber Torres also took the offer.
Nine players declined the QO — including Cubs outfielder Kyle Tucker — to go into free agency.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
