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Jed Hoyer still believes in Cubs despite Cade Horton’s season-ending injury
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- Jed Hoyer still believes in Cubs despite Cade Horton’s season-ending injury
Jed Hoyer still believes in Cubs despite Cade Horton's season-ending injury appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Los Angeles Dodgers have earned the right to be massive World Series favorites, but a perfect storm can hit in October and instantly shatter championship prospects. The Chicago Cubs looked like a hurricane-in-the making entering the 2026 season, possessing a powerful mix of offense and starting pitching that could potentially obstruct LA's path to a three-peat. The Cubbies have yet to induce turbulence thus far, however. They are enduring it instead.
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Chicago currently owns a 6-6 record and just won consecutive games for the first time this year. The lineup is scuffling and the rotation is well below full strength. Rookie of the Year runner-up and stellar right-hander Cade Horton will require season-ending surgery after suffering an elbow injury in his second start, causing fans to quickly lose hope.
Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer understands the significance of losing a phenom, but he also believes the law of averages will allow the ballclub to climb the standings in the near future.
"Obviously, Cade's injury is something that's a real negative for our team — we have to fill that talent gap in our rotation — {but} other than that, we've played 12 games {and} nothing has altered anything I would think about," Hoyer said, per the Marquee Sports Network.
"Our offense projects to be an excellent offense… We haven't really hit yet. I actually think that excites me, because we have really good players that haven't gotten going yet, and at the end of the day, they'll get to where their baseball card says they should be, or better."
Hoyer is making the argument that anyone would if they were in the same position, but even though fans will dismiss his comments as executive-speak, there is plenty of truth to what he is saying.
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Alex Bregman was batting .188 with a .611 OPS going into Friday's home game versus the Pittsburgh Pirates . Signing the two-time World Series champion to a five-year, $175 million contract could prove disastrous, but he should at least be productive in 2026 . Dansby Swanson is also hitting below the Mendoza Line and had a ghastly .521 OPS through his first 40 at-bats. The two-time Gold Glove-winning shortstop has posted a .700-plus OPS every year since 2019. At minimum, he should be serviceable.
Michael Busch is performing even worse than Bregman and Swanson — slugging .174 at time of print — but a power surge will probably come at some point. Pete Crow-Armstrong is admittedly a wild card on offense due to his high chase rate, but he has made the proper adjustments before and should be able to do so again, even if it is only for a stretch of time.
The Wrigley Faithful can also not forget about Seiya Suzuki , who made his season debut on Friday after injuring his knee at the World Baseball Classic. He will be motivated to perform in a contract year.
On the pitching side, Justin Steele is expected to return around June and offseason acquisition Edward Cabrera has not surrendered a run in 11 2/3 innings.
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Simply put, the Cubs still have the firepower to post a successful season. Now, it is time to prove it.
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