Craig Counsell sends blunt Shota Imanaga message as Cubs plan for October

The Chicago Cubs cruised to a 19-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Sunday, but the larger focus may have been on the message Craig Counsell sent Shota Imanaga. As the Cubs carved out their path to October last summer, Imanaga quickly fell out of the team's pitching plans. Imanaga hasn't reached that fate this time around, but it's hard to ignore Counsell's latest warning.

Imanaga labored through two innings of work on Sunday, giving up two runs on five hits and two talks. The impression was that he didn't have much feel for his pitchers, considering only 41 of his 72 pitches were strikes.

It felt like a quick hook from Counsell, but one that was appropriate. After losing on Friday and Saturday, the Cubs couldn't afford to lose on Sunday and be swept by the Mariners. "It's go time" was the message iterated by Counsell after the game, and that has put Imanaga on notice.

Cubs' Shota Imanaga gets clear Craig Counsell message with playoffs looming

“It was just a bad day,” Counsell told reporters after the game. “You could just tell the misses were far bigger than normal. The velocity was down a little bit from the beginning. We’ll just have to regroup. This was kind of isolated right now, and obviously, he gets to prove it the next time out.”

There's some pushback on the idea that Sunday was an isolated incident. Outside of his start against the Chicago White Sox last week, Imanaga's velocity has been trending in the wrong direction. During Sunday's start, Imanga's fastball topped out at 92.2 MPH, but he was often in the low 90s and upper 80s.

For Imanaga specifically, a fastball that struggles to stay over 90 isn't a recipe for success. It was the dip in velocity last year that hinted that regression was coming for him. Regression that ultimately forced Imanaga out of the Cubs' pitching plans in October.

It's one start, sure, but the Cubs aren't in a position where they can stack bad starts from Imanaga. As for what it means for Imanaga's potential role in the playoffs, it's either he figures out his struggles and is part of the rotation, or it's hard imagining him on the roster. For the type of pitcher Imanaga is, it's hard to imagine his stuff playing out of the bullpen.

With the number of pitchers the Cubs are expected to have back before October, Imanaga's role isn't as safe as it may have seemed a few weeks ago.

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