This story was excerpted from Jordan Bastian’s Cubs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
MESA, Ariz. -- The Opening Day starter is more of a ceremonial assignment than anything else. Sometimes there is an obvious choice for the honor, while other years the lack of an established ace or long-time leader creates a situation where multiple pitchers could be worthy of the title.
The 2026 Cubs do not have a clear-cut answer to the Opening Day starter question. Chicago’s rotation group is deep and an argument could be made for all five arms in the projected staff as manager Craig Counsell weighs his options. The Cubs host the Nationals on March 26 at 1:20 p.m. CT at Wrigley Field to begin this season.
With Spring Training games underway, let’s examine the Opening Day case for each starter (in order of likelihood):
1. Cade Horton
Horton finished as the runner-up for the National League Rookie of the Year last season and was, simply put, one of the best pitchers in baseball in the second half. The righty spun a 1.03 ERA in a dozen starts after the All-Star break, leading the Majors (min. 60 innings). NL Cy Young winner Paul Skenes (1.89 ERA) was next in that category.
Overall, Horton ended his rookie campaign with an 11-4 ledger and a 2.67 ERA in 23 appearances, during which he had 97 strikeouts against 33 walks in 118 innings. It was an outstanding debut season for Horton, who at 24 years old could be the youngest Opening Day starter for the Cubs since 2006 (Carlos Zambrano, 24).
2. Matthew Boyd
Boyd is entering his second year with the Cubs, but the 35-year-old left-hander quickly established himself as a leader and revered teammate behind the scenes. He also enjoyed one of the best seasons of his career in '25 in the process. Boyd made his first All-Star team, won a career-high 14 games and turned in a 3.21 ERA in 179 2/3 innings (his most since 2019). He also went 12-1 with a 2.51 ERA at Wrigley Field.
Taillon is entering his fourth season in Chicago and has grown into a leader for the pitching staff. The big right-hander also was the Cubs’ best starter during the playoffs last year, taking the ball twice in elimination games (Game 3 of the Wild Card Series and Game 3 of the Division Series) and posting a 2.25 ERA. Taillon had a 3.68 ERA in 23 starts overall, but was great down the stretch (1.85 ERA in his last seven outings) and strong at home (3.05 ERA in 10 starts).
Imanaga’s best case is that he was the Opening Day starter for the Cubs a year ago, when Chicago faced the Dodgers at the Tokyo Dome in Japan. The lefty was an All-Star and Cy Young contender in '24, but had a bit of a rockier showing in an injury-marred '25. Imanaga still had a respectable showing (3.73 ERA in 25 starts), despite issues in the second half and playoffs.
There is a case to be made for Cabrera as one of the Cubs’ big-ticket acquisitions over a busy offseason. Chicago sent Top 100 prospect Owen Caissie (No. 42) to the Marlins as part of the package to land the 27-year-old Cabrera, who has an extremely high ceiling. The hard-throwing righty had a 3.53 ERA in 26 starts last year, but was one of MLB’s top arms for a long stretch. Cabrera had a 2.22 ERA in a 16-start stretch that ran between May and August.