CLEVELAND — During last season’s September collapse, the Chicago Cubs at least kicked around the idea of adding Cade Horton to their bullpen. Even if it was never a serious possibility, it signaled both the team’s desperation and the young pitcher’s potential to make an immediate impact.
Long-term considerations ultimately prevailed. Jumping from Double-A Tennessee into the National League playoff race would’ve been extremely challenging, if not totally unfair or unrealistic. Horton, though, possessed too much right-now stuff to completely ignore.
That background information is key to understanding the organization’s hopes for Horton heading into what’s now looking like a lost season for the big-time prospect. Cubs general manager Carter Hawkins confirmed that Horton is dealing with “the same injury” that’s sidelined him since the end of May — a subscapularis strain — and “feeling some pain in that area” around the right shoulder.
“He’s had a setback,” Hawkins said before Tuesday’s game against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field. “At this point (in) the year, at this point of his career, it’s not something that we want to push.
“We feel confident that he’ll be ready to rock and roll come spring training. Certainly, he’ll be part of our plans for next year. We just felt like pushing for this year wasn’t the smartest thing for where he is.”
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That means it’s likely that Horton won’t pitch in another minor-league game this season, given his rehab progression and the diminishing runway. To make up for lost time, the Cubs could potentially place Horton in the Arizona Fall League.
“It would be a consideration,” Hawkins said. “With all of those, you have to think about what the down ramp is, too. So you ramp guys up, then you got to ramp guys down, and you have to think about ramping back up for spring training. It’s not out of the question, but that’s part of the conversation.”
Horton will turn 23 next week. He entered this year at No. 49 on The Athletic’s Keith Law’s rankings of the game’s top 100 prospects. He earned a promotion to Triple-A Iowa this season after only four starts (1.10 ERA), potentially putting him on a fast track to Wrigley Field.
As long as Horton returns to full strength and stays healthy, the Cubs can still envision him as a top-of-the-rotation starter because of his skills, athleticism and aptitude.
Horton also hasn’t carried a huge workload yet. His draft stock soared in 2022 after recovering from Tommy John surgery and helping lead Oklahoma into the College World Series. Originally recruited as a two-way player who also had the opportunity to play football for the Sooners, he emerged as the No. 7 pick after throwing only 53 2/3 innings in his lone college season.
“Obviously, he’s a talented pitcher,” Hawkins said. “We would love to be able to bring that talent up. He had just gotten to Triple A when he had gotten hurt. He still had a lot of steps to take.
“There are a lot of guys who have stepped up and done the things that we would have hoped that anyone in our bullpen would do. From that standpoint, we’re certainly not disappointed. But from the standpoint of Cade’s progression, it’s less than ideal.”
“Almost every pitcher that’s come up to the big leagues has had setbacks like this,” Hawkins continued. “There’s plenty of opportunity for him to catch up.”
Required reading
(Photo: Mattie Neretin / USA Today)
