No, the Cubs didn't call up 'Mike Imanaga II' from Triple-A this weekend.
Sitting above one locker alongside the Cubs' typical nameplates—Cody Bellinger, Michael Busch, Seiya Suzuki, etc.—was "Mike Imanaga II." No, the Cubs didn't make a roster move and call up this "Mike Imanaga II" from Triple-A Iowa. It's the alias of Chicago left-handed pitcher Shohei Imanaga that he uses to order coffee before games.
His Cubs teammates recently learned that fact and swapped out his "Shota Imanaga" nameplate in the clubhouse with "Mike Imanaga II." Shota Imanaga has "Mike Imanaga II" on his locker because whenever he goes to Starbucks, they can never pronounce Shota correctly. So now all his teammates nickname him MikeImanaga told reporters Friday that he uses "Mike" when ordering coffee because it's easier for the baristas at Starbucks to pronounce and write on a cup than "Shota." As for the suffix "II"?with the Cubs this offseason, spun another gem on the mound Saturday.
The Cubs have struggled for most of this season—they are 34–37 through 71 games—but they are 11–2 when Imanaga toes the rubber. Imanaga, who owns a 7–1 record, 1.89 and 78 strikeouts this season, is in the mix to add Cy Young winner to his list of aliases along with Mike Imanaga II.Tom Dierberger is a writer and editor for the Breaking & Trending News Team at Sports Illustrated. Tom joined SI in 2023 after stints at FOX Sports, Bally Sports, and NBC Sports. In his spare time, Tom can be seen throwing out his arm while playing fetch with his dog, Walter B. Boy.
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