Chicago Cubs fans (and, likely, players, coaches, front office) let out a collective “oh no” Tuesday night as pitcher Shota Imanaga was taken out of the game after five scoreless innings, just one batter into the sixth.
A little over two weeks after the Cubs’ other lefty ace, Justin Steele, was officially shut down for the season to have elbow surgery, another starter– their top-of-rotation starter– was hurt.
Fortunately, Imanaga’s injury was not severe and his removal from the game was more precautionary than anything else.
“Both legs in the quad area were cramping,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell told assembled media after the game. “It was kind of easy – had to take him out. He feels fine now – no issues. So hopefully it was just that.”
Hopefully.
Chicago Cubs Get A Reality Check In Imanaga Scare
And, although this may have been only a drill, the Cubs have to realize just how precarious their situation is when it comes to the starting rotation.
They may be able to stall, fill, and work around the loss of Steele, at least until trade deadline, but losing a second top starter would prove to be disastrous. Imanaga’s brief scare reminded us of that, but the reality is that there’s reason to question the long-term durability of the oft-injured Matthew Boyd, who is coming off Tommy John surgery, and Ben Brown, who got slapped around a bit in his last start and is also coming off a serious injury that shut down his season last year. There’s also the fact that Javier Assad re-injured himself during his minors rehab assignment and will reportedly be out for at least one more month.
So, what can the Cubs do if the unspeakable happens and they lose another starter (or one falls wildly out of favor)? The trade market is not open so early in the season and the team doesn’t have another Colin Rea to provide a veteran stopgap.
The team announced on Wednesday that they were bringing up the 30-year-old Triple-A starter Chris Flexen, who’s been impressive in Iowa so far this season. That is, already, an admission that the rotation may need some help. It’s quite possible that they may need more help down the line.
Will They Bring Up Cade Horton?
Well, if more bad thing happen, the Cubs may have no other choice but to reach down to Iowa and pull up an admittedly not-quite-ready Cade Horton, their top pitching prospect.
As recently as this past Sunday, though, Counsell dismissed the idea of the 23-year-old, who’s posted a stellar 1.17 ERA in five starts for the Iowa Cubs this season, being called up to the majors in the immediate future.
“I think it’s a little soon…Cade, he’s coming off a serious injury,” Counsell told reporters before Sunday’s finale against the Philadelphia Phillies. “It’s April still, and I think it’s important that he has both a physical foundation and a foundation of success.
“And we’re building that right now, and he’s building that right now, and he’s doing a great job of it. But we’re early in the process…There’s absolutely things that he needs to keep improving on. And those are going to be important. And some of those things, they don’t necessarily show up in Triple-A, and they’ll show up immediately here.”
Not Ready Yet?
Horton was the Cubs’ 2022 first-round draft pick but had his 2024 season shut down in late May due to a subscapularis strain in his right shoulder. This represented the second serious injury of his short pitching career, as he had Tommy John surgery in 2021 as a college freshman in Oklahoma.
He has definitely impressed in Triple-A, but there have been some control issues and some stamina issues, as advanced analytics show him losing significant velocity and movement after the 60-70 pitch mark. All of this is to be expected of a young pitcher coming back from injury.
The talent and tenacity is there, though and, in case of emergency, he may have no choice but to get a true baptism-by-fire introduction to the minors.
“I think there’s no question, a healthy Cade Horton, he’s going to impact this team,” Counsell said.
The question is whether the need for a quality starter will override the team’s concern about bringing the young asset along carefully.
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