Cubs dealt untimely blow: Horton to IL with rib fracture

CHICAGO – Cubs rookie Cade Horton played catch on Saturday morning at Wrigley Field, and manager Craig Counsell noted that the righty was scheduled to get back on a mound as soon as Sunday. Everything pointed to Horton being on target to take the ball in the upcoming National League Wild Card Series against the Padres.

That changed shortly before Saturday’s 7-3 win over the Cardinals, when the Cubs made the unexpected announcement that Horton had been placed on the 15-day injured list due to a right rib fracture. That removed Horton – one of baseball’s top pitchers in the second half and a leading NL Rookie of the Year contender – from at least the first round of the playoffs.

“He really wanted to pitch,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said. “He felt like he could do it. He’s a tough kid. But I think when it became clear he couldn’t throw without feeling it and having that discomfort, you can’t [take that] risk.”

Horton exited his start against the Mets on Tuesday after three innings and 29 pitches due to tightness in his mid-back and right ribcage area. Counsell pointed to a recent illness that included a persistent cough as the likely culprit behind the pitcher’s setback, which included trouble while taking deep breaths.

After Horton underwent an MRI exam, Counsell said there were “areas of concern” that necessitated seeking a second opinion from another physician. On Friday, the manager said the secondary review confirmed a rib injury, but added: “We’re comfortable moving forward and continuing him just progressing.”

Hoyer confirmed that the team knew about the rib fracture on Wednesday, but Horton wanted to see if he could still pitch through the issue. There was “a little concern” with how things went in Friday’s catch session, per Hoyer, who said things did not improve during Saturday’s workout. Horton still reported discomfort in his side and had issues getting full extension in his throwing motion.

“Look, he really wanted to try. And we thought it was worth trying,” Counsell said. “We didn’t get very far, obviously. And that’s the way it goes. We just didn’t get very far, because he’s got something that he’s just not going to be able to pitch with. That’s the unfortunate part of this.”

Hoyer said there was no real way to know if the illness and coughing caused the injury.

“The honest answer is I don’t think we know,” Hoyer said. “There was no acute event that we know of – just his ribs were just sore and then it got worse.”

The IL stint for Horton is retroactive to Thursday, meaning the right-hander will not be eligible for activation until Oct. 10 at the earliest. The NL Division Series would resume on Oct. 11 if a Game 5 is required. Postseason rosters are set prior to each round, and a player not featured can only be added mid-round as an injury replacement.

Without Horton available for the best-of-three NL Wild Card Series, which begins on Tuesday at Wrigley Field, the Cubs’ likely choices for Game 1 and/or Game 2 are left-handers Matthew Boyd and Shota Imanaga. Right-hander Jameson Taillon (Saturday’s starter vs. St. Louis) could be an option for a Game 3 scenario, with starters Javier Assad and Colin Rea also at the ready.

“He’s a great kid – wants to be great,” Taillon said of Horton. “I know it hurt him a lot to have to go on the IL and not be a part of the first round. That says a lot about him. He just wants to be a part of the team and wants to help. He’s been incredible for us. He picked us up a lot this year when I was down for a while, Shota was down for a while. So now it’s our turn to try to pick him up.”

With Horton landing on the IL, the Cubs recalled lefty Jordan Wicks from Triple-A Iowa.

The news on the 24-year-old Horton is a big blow for the Cubs, considering the kind of roll he had been on for the past few months.

Overall this season, Horton has gone 11-4 with a 2.67 ERA in 23 games (22 starts), compiling 97 strikeouts against 33 walks in 118 innings. Since the start of July, the young righty has logged a 1.36 ERA. Horton really turned a corner in the second half, spinning a 1.03 ERA that led all MLB pitchers (minimum 50 innings). Leading NL Cy Young Award candidate Paul Skenes ranked second with a 1.89 ERA in that same span.

“He likes to compete,” Hoyer said. “And I think the idea of not being able to pitch in his first postseason in his rookie year, in a year that he might’ve been one of the best pitchers in baseball in the second half, it’s incredibly disappointing. But he did everything he could do.

“We talked to his agent a lot. We talked to him a lot. He certainly wanted to give this a shot and thought he could. And obviously today we realized he couldn’t.”