Cubs’ Shota Imanaga pitches 5 scoreless innings vs. Cardinals in return from left hamstring strain

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga pitched five scoreless innings against the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday, helping Chicago to a 3-0 victory in his return from a strained left hamstring that had sidelined him since May 4.

The Cubs split the four-game series, shutting out the Cardinals in the final two games.

“I’m very grateful,” Imanaga said through an interpreter. “I just wanted to even the series.”

Imanaga, a 31-year-old from Japan in his second season with Chicago, was activated from the 15-day injured list to pitch against the Cardinals.

“He did a really good job for us,” catcher Carson Kelly said. “He came in and established his heater and his splitter and what he does really really good is tunnel the two and get in some good counts.”

Imanaga (4-2) threw 77 pitches, 49 for strikes, and allowed one hit — a first-inning single to Masyn Winn. After that, he retired 10 straight batters before issuing his lone walk. Imanaga struck out three.

“I wouldn’t say I felt 100 percent in control with all my pitches,” Imanaga said. “A shout-out to my defense. Also, I thought Kelly called a really good game. So, I would save I got saved by all my teammates.”

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Cubs manager Craig Counsell liked what he saw.

“He controlled the environment. It looked like he’d been out there for every single start,” Counsell said. “(There’s) a tendency to get over-amped in a start like that. I thought he controlled his effort level really well, his energy level really well and that caused a lot of good execution.”

Brendan Donovan led off with a grounder to first and Imanaga easily got to the bag for the throw — a sign that his hamstring is no longer an issue.

“I’ve been a position as a player where you’re coming back from an injury and it’s a tester,” Kelly said. “He passed.”

Making that play was helpful, Imanaga said.

“I felt relaxed afterward and I felt the team felt the same way,” Imanaga said. “I was able to stay calm and make the play. I had a sigh of relief after that.”

He lowered his ERA to 2.54.

“The fastball just plays up. It gets on you a little more than you think,” Cardinals manager Olivar Marmol said. “There’s some hesitation with the delivery which adds for a little bit of deception and then the split down is a good pitch. He mixed well.”

Left-hander Caleb Thielbar came in to start the sixth, the second of five Chicago pitchers who combined on a three-hitter.

Imanaga has made nine starts this season, allowing two or fewer runs in seven of them. He was an All-Star as a rookie last season, when he went 15-3 with a 2.91 ERA.

Imanaga made three minor league rehab starts, most recently for Triple-A Iowa on Friday, when he threw 72 pitches in 4 1/3 scoreless innings.

The NL Central-leading Cubs went 25-16 while he was on the IL.

To make room for Imanaga on the roster, Chicago designated right-hander Michael Fulmer for assignment. The 32-year-old Fulmer made two scoreless appearances for the Cubs this week during their series against the Cardinals.

Fulmer had a 4.42 ERA in 58 appearances for the Cubs in 2023, but the right-hander needed Tommy John surgery and missed last year. He also had the Tommy John procedure in 2019.

Fulmer appeared in one game this season for the Boston Red Sox, surrendering three runs and four hits in 2 2/3 innings on April 14. He then was released and signed a minor league deal with the Cubs.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb