News broke that the Chicago Cubs first-round pick in 2022 and one of the best pitching prospects in the game has been promoted to Triple-A. The promotion to Iowa puts Cade Horton one step closer to the big leagues and onto the roster of Craig Counsell‘s club. Horton is considered as a consensus top-three pitching prospect in baseball and one of the few who has the upside to front the Cubs rotation someday.
“You’re always kind of paying attention just because you want good players in the minor leagues,” Counsell said. “You want guys doing well and kind of force the next decision for the team. I look at it as this is just another possibility. No more, just another possible solution or a choice that we have when unforeseen things happen. That’s really as much as anything how I look at it. Hopefully, we’re closer to developing another good option for us.”
Cade Horton is getting called up to Triple-A.
His numbers in Double-A are eye popping ? pic.twitter.com/HSeub1Bmf3
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) April 30, 2024
Cade Horton Promoted to Triple-A
Horton, 22, dominated with Double-A Tennessee, allowing two earned runs in 16 1/3 innings with 18 strikeouts and two walks. Horton is known for his four-seam fastball who has an impressive sharp slider and changeup. Cubs assistant general manager, Jared Banner, who was the vice president of player development before his promotion, isn’t surprised by Horton’s success.
“He can be aggressive, but he doesn’t walk people at the same time,” Banner said. “He’s not forcing the case. He’s attacking the zone and getting some quick outs as well. It’s a strong combination when your stuff is good enough to play in and out of the strike zone.”
Cubs Pitching Development is Taking Strong Strides
The exciting news of Horton proves one thing- the Cubs pitching development has taken a huge step forward over the last few seasons. Homegrown pitching talent was hard to come by, but not so much anymore. Justin Steele, Javier Assad, Jordan Wicks and Adbert Alzolay are the names who had success stories in their developments. It surprised many when the Cubs took Horton seventh overall.
Sit ’em down, Cade Horton!
MLB’s No. 23 prospect (@Cubs) strikes out six batters over five scoreless innings for @smokiesbaseball: pic.twitter.com/ltqyFvYZeF
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) April 28, 2024
Two summers ago, Horton was a two-player out of the University of Oklahoma. He barely pitched for the Sooners as he recovered from Tommy John surgery. However, he did have a dominant run through the College World Series, which caught the eyes of Cubs scouts. So far, Horton has been an outstanding pick. In three levels in 2023, Horton made 21 starts, posting a 2.65 ERA with a 117:27 K:BB ratio in 88 1/3 innings. Horton ended the season at Double-A and remained there to begin this season. In four starts, he posted a 1.10 ERA while striking out 29 percent of batters while walking them at a 3.2 clip rate.
The conversation about Horton coming up this year will be a curious one. He’s got the talent to make an impact on a club that has postseason aspirations.
Main Photo: © Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports
