Chicago Cubs top pitching prospect is focused on being better this season

Recently MLB.com and MLB Pipeline released their list of the top 100 prospects in Major League Baseball and the Chicago Cubs had seven of their prospects top the rankings.

One of those prospects is right-hander Cade Horton who is the 52nd overall prospect in baseball and he will figure to debut with the Cubs at some point this season.

Recently sitting down with 670 the Score to discuss his offseason and plans for the year, Horton gave some great insight into his mental state and what he has been working on.

Chicago Cubs No. 52 overall prospect

Drafted by the Cubs in the first round seventh overall in the 2022 MLB June Amateur Draft from the University of Oklahoma, the 23-year-old Horton was on track to make his debut with the Cubs last season before being derailed with a subscapular strain in his shoulder. A pitcher with a four-pitch mix, Horton has a plus fastball (60/80) and plus-plus slider (70/80) that figure to be his strikeout pitches. Horton also carries a solid curveball (50/80) and a below-average changeup in his arsenal with decent overall control (55/80). 

“Horton’s plus-plus mid-80s slider with two-plane depth was as effective as ever last season, producing a 49 percent chase rate and 50 percent swing-and-miss rate. His fastball dipped slightly when his shoulder began bothering him, but when healthy, he operates in the mid-90s and peaks at 98 mph with carry and run. He’ll use a low-80s curveball to give hitters a different look, while his upper-80s changeup has some fade and can miss bats, but he has trouble throwing it for strikes.”

Horton recently said he wanted a “seat on the plane” and has said he would even be open to being a reliever for the Cubs if that were what would get him there. The Cubs currently have an open spot in the rotation and Horton will figure to get a decent amount of looks this spring to see if he is worthy of taking that spot. 

The interview with 670 the Score

During his appearance on 670 the Score, Horton sounded great and seemed energized to go for the season. He stated that one of his main focuses coming into this offseason was emphasizing that he has to be more of an athlete on the mound. This means that not only does he have to pitch well but be a good fielding pitcher and be able to field his position to help himself out.

Horton also expressed that one of his main goals was to make sure that his mechanics were sound and more importantly that his hands separated on time. Horton expressed that would help him be able to throw more consistent strikes. Another area of focus mechanically for Horton was making sure he stayed on his backside longer in order to get more drive down the mound and to the plate.

Another big area of focus for Horton that he expressed was really important to him was getting better with the mental side of the game. He stated that he is only trying to control the things he can control and that he treats every bullpen session as if it were a game situation.

Primed to debut with the Chicago Cubs

After having his season derailed last year Horton said he had the itch to get back going this year after not being able to face hitters in so long.

Horton will figure to start the season in Triple-A to see how well he bounces back from the should injury and give him consistent starts every fifth day to get him ready.

If Horton shows out in the first month of the season there is no reason as to why the Chicago Cubs wouldn’t entertain the thought of giving him a shot.