CHICAGO -- Shota Imanaga has played alongside Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani with Team Japan, but the Cubs' lefty had never faced the slugger prior to Sunday afternoon. As rain fell on Wrigley Field, Imanaga peered into the batter’s box in the first inning and watched as Ohtani settled into his stance.

“He's very tall,” Imanaga said via his interpreter, Edwin Stanberry. “He has a presence about him.”

Facing Ohtani was a great early test for Imanaga, just as taking on the Dodgers this weekend was an early litmus test for a Cubs team that hopes to take the October stage this fall. With an 8-1 win on Sunday, the North Siders passed this exam by taking two out of three from Los Angeles and its intimidating lineup.

And Imanaga continued to pass his own tests. In the first inning, the lefty engaged in a nine-pitch battle with Ohtani and ended things with an inside fastball that eluded the slugger’s bat for a strikeout. Overall, Imanaga held the first four hitters of L.A’s offense to a 1-for-8 showing in another strong performance.

“He's awesome,” Cubs first baseman Michael Busch said. “That guy, just watching his presence on the mound, there's something about him.”

Here are three takeaways from Sunday’s win over the Dodgers:

1. Shota extends scoreless streak
Imanaga was cruising through the Dodgers’ lineup before a two-hour and 51-minute rain delay interrupted his outing in the fourth inning. Up to that point, the lefty was building off his impressive Major League debut against the Rockies and compiling similarly-stellar results.

“He did his job today and he couldn't do anything more than that,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “Mother Nature got in the way of it, but he pitched really well. His pitch count was certainly in a position for him to get deeper in the game.”

Over four innings of work, Imanaga kept Los Angeles off the scoreboard and ended with three strikeouts, no walks and two hits allowed. Through his first two MLB starts, the lefty has racked up 12 strikeouts against no walks in 10 scoreless frames. He leaned heavily on his heater on Sunday and generated eight swinging strikes overall, giving him 28 whiffs on the young season.

Imanaga was not ready to read too much into such a small sample of work.

“The season's going to be really long,” Imanaga said, “so it's not necessarily anything to build confidence. I just want to make sure I stay healthy and then be able to pitch the whole season.”

Busch shines vs. former team
Busch definitely took note of when the Dodgers were going to be visiting Wrigley Field this season. The Cubs' rookie first baseman -- acquired from Los Angeles in a trade on Jan. 11 -- acknowledged as much when asked earlier this weekend if he had this series circled in his mind.

“In a sense,” Busch told reporters. “I also had throwing on a Cubs uniform -- that's pretty special. Being able to play against former teammates, it’s definitely one that was circled. But at the same time, it's another series. It's another chance for us to get a win.”

Busch played a key role in both of Chicago’s wins in the series.

In the 9-7 victory on Friday, Busch launched his first career homer in a Cubs uniform and made a couple slick plays, including snagging the game-ending lineout off the bat of James Outman. After collecting a double in Saturday’s loss, Busch connected for a three-run double in the first inning on Sunday to send the Cubs on their way to the win column.

3. Cubs’ defense shines in series
Chicago’s defense -- anchored by Gold Glove shortstop Dansby Swanson and Gold Glove second baseman Nico Hoerner -- made a stream of highlight-reel plays throughout the series. That continued in the finale on Sunday.

In the third, Swanson ranged into the hole to snare a Miguel Rojas grounder and threw across his body, while on the run, to Busch for the out. Hoerner -- who contributed a game-saving diving stop in the fourth inning on Friday -- added a leaping catch to steal a hit away from Will Smith in the seventh on Sunday.

“The more and more I play with them,” Busch said, “the more and more they keep surprising me just a little bit more of just how good they are. And I know they're so good. I mean, they're two Gold Glovers up the middle. And each and every day I play with them, they seem to do something that's just awe. They leave people in awe.”