Fantasy Baseball Player Notes

Shota Imanaga followed up a brilliant 2024 debut (2.91 ERA, 25.1% K rate, 4.0% BB rate) with a more volatile 2025 campaign, as his ERA climbed to 3.73 and his strikeout rate dipped to 20.6%. While he continued to limit walks at an elite clip (4.6% BB%) and suppress batting average (.218 BAA), a spike in home run rate (5.5% HR%) and hard-hit contact (43.9%) led to a sharp jump in FIP (4.86). The batted-ball profile shift — fewer ground balls (29.1%) and more fly balls (39.7%) — suggests his margin for error narrowed considerably compared to 2024. Fantasy managers should view Imanaga as a mild faller entering 2026 drafts, though his strong command and projected workload stability keep him firmly in SP2 territory if the homer regression stabilizes.

Edward Cabrera put together his most complete season in 2025, logging a career-high 137.2 innings with a 3.53 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and a career-best 8.3% walk rate. The improved command was the key development, as his strikeout rate (25.8%) remained comfortably above league average while his BB% dipped closer to MLB norms (8.4%). Cabrera's 90.0 mph average exit velocity and 46.5% hard-hit rate show there's still some volatility, but his 3.83 FIP and 9.8 K/9 support the overall skills growth. If the 2026 projections hold around similar strikeout production with manageable walks, Cabrera profiles as a high-upside SP3 in fantasy with room for more if the control gains stick. The health and workload trend from 2025 is equally important after earlier durability concerns. He's best deployed as a strikeout-leaning arm in roto formats, but the narrowed walk rate gives him a higher weekly floor than in previous seasons.

Cade Horton broke through in 2025 with a 2.67 ERA and 1.09 WHIP across 118 innings, finishing second in NL Rookie of the Year voting after posting a 144 ERA+. His underlying profile was strong but not overpowering, as his 3.58 FIP and 7.4 K/9 suggest more command-and-contact management than bat-missing dominance. Horton limited damage effectively (0.8 HR/9, 2.5 BB/9), and his 3.05 RA9 backed up much of the run prevention, though some regression toward his estimators is reasonable entering 2026. If the 2026 projections push him closer to the mid-3.00s in ERA with a modest bump in workload, that frames Horton as a high-floor SP3/SP4 in fantasy rather than a true ace. Without elite strikeout volume, his value will hinge on efficiency, wins and ratio stability in a competitive Cubs rotation. Draft him as a steady innings stabilizer, but avoid paying for a repeat sub-2.75 ERA unless there's tangible growth in swing-and-miss.