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Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga combined with two relievers to no-hit the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 12-0 win Wednesday night.
Imanaga (12-3), a 31-year-old left-hander in his first season with the Cubs after pitching in Japan for eight seasons, struck out seven and walked two over seven innings. He threw 66 of 95 pitches for strikes.
He needed 25 pitches to get through the second inning. His season high is 103 pitches against St. Louis on June 15. Imanaga has not gotten an out in the eighth inning this season.
Imanaga agreed in January to a $53 million, four-year contract. Chicago paid a $9,825,000 posting fee to the Yokohama BayStars of Japan’s Central League.
Nate Pearson pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning and Porter Hodge a perfect ninth in the Cubs’ 18th no-hitter, and their first since Zach Davies, Ryan Tepera, Andrew Chafin and Craig Kimbrel combined to hold Los Angeles hitless at Dodger Stadium on June 24, 2021.
The Cubs had 17 hits on Wednesday night, marking just the third no-hitter in the past 50 years in which a team outhit the other by 17 or more, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
This was the fourth no-hitter this season after complete-game efforts by Houston’s Ronel Blanco against Toronto on April 1, San Diego’s Dylan Cease at Washington on July 25 and San Francisco’s Blake Snell at Cincinnati on April 2.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.