The Chicago Cubs are getting closer to clinching home field advantage for their Wild Card series that will be against the San Diego Padres, but fans are holding their breath, waiting to see the results from Cade Horton's MRI results.
The 24-year-old starter has had an amazing rookie season for the Cubs and thanks to his second-half success Horton was lining up to be the team's Game 1 starter in the postseason. He made Tuesday's start against the New York Mets, but was pulled after only three innings. The Cubs eventually revealed that Horton was removed as a precautionary measure because of tightness in his back.
After the Cubs blew a 6-1 lead and lost the series opener 9-7, Craig Counsell said Horton had been ill leading up to Tuesday's start. The initial hope was that Horton's back issue was related to the illness.
Prior to Wednesday night's game Counsell appeared on 670 The Score and said Horton was undergoing an MRI on his back.
Horton hasn't simply been the best starting pitcher for the Cubs during the past few months, the rookie right-hander has been the best starting pitcher in MLB since July. Following the worst start to his young career, a four-inning outing against the Houston Astros on June 28, when he gave up seven earned runs, Horton has recorded a 1.36 ERA in his last 14 starts.
The numbers become historic following the All-Star break as Horton posted a 1.03 ERA in 12 starts. The Cubs' rookie has not allowed more than two earned runs since July 9.
Losing Horton, even if it is only for the Wild Card series, would be a major blow to the team's chances advancing past the Padres. Is it the end of the world for the Cubs? Certainly not, but there's no denying that the team is better when Horton is on the mound.
At this point I think the best-case scenario is that Horton isn't sidelined, but needs a few extra days to recover, so if needed, he'll pitch Game 3 in the Wild Card series. We'll find out soon here what those MRI results revealed.
