The Chicago Cubs have been connected to Japanese pitcher Tatsuya Imai for a couple of weeks now. It’s not a real surprise to see the Cubs showing interest in the right-hander.

They are in need of a frontline starter and have been very involved in the Japanese market in recent offseasons. Chicago has signed both Seiya Suzuki and Shota Imanaga from overseas over the past five years.

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So, the Cubs’ interest in Imai is likely very real. Although other teams are said to be in on the Japanese star as well, it appears the North Siders are serious suitors for him. Multiple insiders linked him to the Cubs on Wednesday afternoon.

MLB insider Francys Romero said the New York Yankees and Chicago Cubs are “expected to be finalists” for Imai, and MLB insider Jim Bowden lists the Cubs as the best fit for the right-hander, with the Yankees at No. 2 and the New York Mets at No. 3.

“The teams that he’s been linked to the most are the Cubs, Yankees, Mets and Padres, and all of those clubs make sense,” Bowden wrote in an article at The Athletic. “The Cubs would like another starter and they could certainly use a younger option since three-fifths of their rotation is over 34 years old (Matthew Boyd, Jameson Taillon and Colin Rea), making Imai a particularly good fit in Chicago.”

With these two reports coming out, the Cubs feel like one of the favorites to land Imai. It has been a relatively quiet offseason for the North Siders, and the 27-year-old could be the team’s big signing this winter.

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Imai would be a massive addition for a Cubs team that is looking for a top-of-the-line rotation arm. He has the chance to make an immediate impact in Year 1 and has the potential to be a really good pitcher in the Majors in his career.

Imai played eight seasons in the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) Organization, where he had a career 3.15 ERA, 14 complete games, seven shutouts, and 907 strikeouts across 963 ⅔ innings pitched (159 appearances).

The best season of his NPB career actually came last year. He finished with a 1.92 ERA, five complete games, three shutouts, and 178 strikeouts across 163 ⅔ innings pitched for the Saitama Seibu Lions.

With an elite fastball and an above-average slider, Imai would be the perfect fit for the Cubs. His fastball touches 99 mph, and he could eventually become the No. 1 guy in Chicago’s rotation. That’s how good the right-hander can be in the Majors.

Seeing the Cubs linked to him is an encouraging sign that there is a real chance he lands in the Windy City.