Cade Horton would relish nothing more than the chance to help save the 2025 season for the Chicago Cubs.
And he may just get that opportunity, though not necessarily in the way that he would have hoped.
With the loss of Justin Steele to season-ending elbow surgery, the Cubs are left trying to figure out how they can salvage their playoff hopes. Publicly, the team is touting its internal options, and Horton’s quick rise through the system is one of the main talking points to support that approach.
Horton was the first-round draft pick (7th overall) by the Cubs in 2022. He tore through Single-A and High-A play in 2023 and finished the season at Double-A with the Knoxville Smokies, where he posted a 1.33 ERA with 31 strikeouts in 27 innings.
Horton began last season at Knoxville but was soon called up to Triple-A Iowa. However, the quick ride ended on May 29, as he left that day’s game after just one inning due to pain in his lat. He was eventually diagnosed with a Grade 2 right subscapularis strain and missed the rest of the season.
“That is tough, because I’m always the guy that’s wanting to go until I break,” Horton said during the offseason.
“Having those people around me to be like, ‘No, let’s do the smart thing. You have a whole career ahead of you.’ That’s what I’ve really learned is you should say something and get right, because it’s hard to go out there and pitch if you aren’t feeling good.”
Cade Horton Rises Quickly Through Cubs Minor League System
The 23-year-old right-hander is back at Iowa this season, a phone call away from the big leagues, but the Cubs aren’t quite ready to make that call just yet. In 12.1 innings over three starts, Horton is 1-1 with a 1.46 ERA and 18 strikeouts, but he also has walked 10 batters, and Cubs manager Craig Counsell said it’s important to remember how little time Horton has spent as a professional pitcher.
“Keep developing. Keep improving. And we’ll see where that gets us sometime in the middle of the summer,” Counsell said. “Cade needs to pitch. There’s mound time that’s really important to him. He’s going out there and getting that right now. That’s super valuable.”
But with each successful outing at Iowa, the Cub’s No. 2 prospect makes himself super valuable to other MLB teams as well. And as the pressure continues to build on Chicago to make good on its postseason aspirations, Horton’s worth as a trade chip could become even more immediately useful.
Cade Horton Has Become a Valuable Trade Commodity for Chicago
As would be expected, Horton’s name has appeared often in trade ideas to help the Cubs acquire some of the top starting pitchers thought to be available this season. One such proposal, from Mike Ostrowski of Athlon Sports, packages Horton with Cristian Hernandez (No. 11 prospect), Brody McCullough (No. 23), and recent Rule 5 selection Gage Workman in exchange for Miami Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara.
“Horton is the centerpiece of the deal, as he projects to be a top-of-the-rotation arm himself and is already at Triple-A,” Ostrowski wrote. “By the time Alcantara’s current deal is up, he could take his previous spot atop Miami’s rebuilt rotation.”
In a similar deal for Alcantara suggested by Zach Pressnell of FanSided, Chicago would send Horton to Miami along with outfielders Owen Caissie (No. 3) and Kevin Alcántara (No. 6), as well as corner infielder Cole Mathis (No. 15).
“A trade for Alcántara would be quite expensive,” Pressnell acknowledged, “but it’s the price the Cubs need to pay if they want to overtake the Los Angeles Dodgers and win the World Series.”
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