A rib injury cost Cade Horton the final weeks of his superb rookie campaign, forcing him to watch from the side as the Chicago Cubs competed in the playoffs. He has been yearning to get back on the mound since that untimely pause. The National League Rookie of the Year runner-up is scratching that itch during spring training. He is picking up right where he left off in 2025, amazing everyone around him.
The Cubs are urging Horton to gradually work his way toward regular-season form, but he is still shining in Mesa, Arizona. The young right-hander is already firing fastballs at 96 and 98 mph, per The Athletic's Sahadev Sharma. If that was not impressive enough, manager Craig Counsell says that Horton is just “cruising” along.
Fans should be beaming with pride when thinking about the 24-year-old's potential. He tallied an 11-4 record with a 2.67 ERA, 97 strikeouts, 1.085 WHIP and .615 OPS against in 118 innings. Horton was spectacular for the final few months of the season, looking like Chicago's best pitcher before his campaign was cut short on Sept. 23. Now, he is positioning himself for a huge 2026.
Counsell is trusting the 2022 first-round draft pick to maintain a standard of excellence over the course of an entire season.
“He dominated the league last year,” the veteran skipper said at the beginning of spring training, per The Athletic. “There (weren’t) many challenges when he was pitching. He was outstanding. Now it’s: Do it again. Do it over a full season.”
Cade Horton understands what is expected of him moving forward. Although the Cubs boast one of the deepest starting rotations in baseball — Matthew Boyd, Shota Imanaga, Edward Cabrera, Jameson Taillon and Justin Steele (will return from elbow surgery at some point) — the youngest member of the group could be the most important one.
Chicago's World Series hopes may hinge on Horton's continued development. Fortunately, he seems to be progressing rather nicely.
