The Shota Boys (or Shota Shirts) was a fan phenomenon to support the Japanese baseball pitcher Shà Âta Imanaga (ä»Âæ°¸ æÂÂ太, Imanaga Shà Âta). The sensation became viral during the MLB Chicago Cubs vs Los Angeles Dodgers series on April 7, 2024 (April 8 in Japan) when six former and current Joliet West High School students went shirtless, spelling out âÂÂSHOTA!â on the Wrigley Field stands; Imanaga noticed and tossed the ball back into the crowd. Their stunt was featured on the Marquee Network (the exclusive local television home of the Chicago Cubs) and widely shared across platforms such as X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, and LINE.
In the days following the stunt, media from Barstool Sports to MLBâÂÂs official outlets covered the story. In his third start of the season, Imanaga limited the Seattle Mariners to one unearned run over 5â  innings in a 4âÂÂ1 victory, an on-field performance coupled with his use of music and custom apparel that spurred the Shota Boys tribute. About two weeks later, ChicagoâÂÂs Obvious Shirts reached out on X to propose gifting each member of the Shota Boys a personalized shirt with their corresponding letter. Cole Pearson, the âÂÂSâÂÂ, received a message indicating Imanaga himself wanted to present the shirts in person. On April 21, 2024, the six friendsâÂÂCole Pearson, Zack Chignoli, Joe Lukancic, Matt Marchiniak, Casey Tyrell, and Riley SchellingâÂÂwere featured on MLB.com as they arrived at Wrigley Field to accept their shirts from Imanaga.
The âÂÂOâ in âÂÂSHOTAâÂÂ, Joe Lukancic, was profiled by CBS Chicago as an Aurora University freshman who led Division III in hits and painted himself as one of the original Shota Boys at Wrigley Field, adding more depth to the fan phenomenon.
More recently, the Shota Boys appeared in the Chicago Cubsâ promotional spot for the season opener in Japan. This 15-second clip features Riley SchellingâÂÂthe fan known for his exclamation markâÂÂand was posted to the teamâÂÂs official X account on April 14 (April 15 in Japan), achieving nearly 280,000 views in one day.