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The Chicago Cubs' top prospect, Owen Caissie, made his long-anticipated Major League debut Thursday at Rogers Centre, just 35 miles from his hometown of Burlington, Ontario, in a 2-1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays.
Ranked No. 45 in baseball by MLB Pipeline, the 23-year-old outfielder was called up after catcher Miguel Amaya sprained his left ankle in Wednesday’s win over Toronto. The timing was tight, Caissie woke up in Iowa, flew to Toronto, and arrived at the ballpark roughly 90 minutes before first pitch. His parents reached the stadium before he did.
Caissie called his mother Wednesday night to share the news of the call-up and mentioned Scherzer would be starting.
“I was like, ‘Guess who I'm facing tomorrow?'” he said. Regarding his mother’s reaction, he added: “I was like, ‘Guess who I'm facing tomorrow?' … His mom twisted her mouth to the side, an expression that pretty much meant, ‘Good luck with that.’”
Caissie batted fifth as the designated hitter, facing future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer in his first at-bat. On Scherzer’s first pitch, a 93.5 mph four-seamer, Caissie drove the ball into the left-center gap, but Blue Jays left fielder Davis Schneider made a full-extension diving catch to rob him of his first MLB hit. Caissie finished 0-for-4 with a strikeout.
“It was surreal,” Caissie said. “Growing up watching the Blue Jays, I’m just super thankful the Cubs could make my debut happen in front of the Canadian people I cherish so much.” He also added, “It means everything. To do that at home, that’s pretty cool. They sacrificed pretty much everything for me.”
Originally drafted 45th overall by the San Diego Padres in 2020, the highest-drafted Canadian outfielder ever, Caissie joined the Cubs in the December 2020 trade that sent Yu Darvish to San Diego. In 93 games with Triple-A Iowa this season, he posted a .289/.389/.566 slash line with 22 home runs, 26 doubles, and a .955 OPS. Across five minor-league seasons, he has maintained an .873 OPS.
Cubs manager Craig Counsell praised Caissie’s plate discipline and solid contact, said Caissie doesn’t yet hit home runs but can generate plenty of power, and lauded how Caissie improved his in-zone hitting and reduced his strikeout rate since reaching Triple-A.
Assistant GM Jared Banner described Caissie’s debut as a milestone in his growth, praising how he handled early obstacles in High-A South Bend and demonstrating the strength of the Cubs’ player development.
Thursday’s debut came in a closely contested pitchers’ duel. Michael Busch’s solo home run gave Chicago a 1-0 lead in the sixth, but Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a go-ahead two-run homer off Cubs starter Matthew Boyd in the seventh. Boyd allowed only two hits over seven innings with five strikeouts.
The Cubs (68-52) went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position and left seven on base, falling eight games behind the NL Central-leading Brewers but holding the top Wild Card spot. Caissie became the fourth Cub in 2025 to debut at age 23 or younger, joining Cade Horton, Matt Shaw, and Moises Ballesteros.
