Inside The Cubs

Cubs Looking To Capitalize On Pitcher Fresh Off The Rockies' Injured List

The Chicago Cubs are in need of a win and that could come tonight in their opener with the Rockies.
Maddy Dickens|
Aug 6, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs pitcher Cade Horton (22) throws the ball against the Cincinnati Reds during the first inning at Wrigley Field.
Aug 6, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs pitcher Cade Horton (22) throws the ball against the Cincinnati Reds during the first inning at Wrigley Field. | David Banks-Imagn Images

The San Francisco Giants just destroyed the Chicago Cubs in a three-game stretch and they need to bounce back. They have the perfect opportunity in their next series with the Colorado Rockies to gain some confidence, specifically with their offense.

The opener at Coors Field is going to feature rookie sensation Cade Horton and Germán Márquez.

The biggest road block for the Cubs recently is themselves and there is no reason they can't get back into the race for the NL Central title. Their toughest matchup before the third week of September is the Tampa Bay Rays, who are five games under .500 while the Milwaukee Brewers have to take on the Philadelphia Phillies and the Toronto Blue Jays in their next two series.

Horton vs. Márquez

Horton getting ready to throw a pitch in a solid grey uniform with blue
Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images

Looking at Márquez's numbers this season he looks like, well, a Rockies' starting pitcher, but his last seven-starts he have been incredible.

The hiccup for Márquez is that this will be his first start since his placement on the injured list which was over a month ago. Historically, when a player (specifically a pitcher) comes back from IL, his first game doesn't go quite as good as he would hope and the Cubs can capitalize on that.

The Cubs' offense needs to see the bat make contact over and over again in this series. They have continued to struggle getting runners across home plate and if there is any pitching staff that can give an opposing batter confidence it is the Colorado Rockies.

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If Chicago can come out of this series with a win (hopefully sweep) with 15+ runs on the board in a three-game stretch, it would do wonders for their confidence going into September.

Horton, on the other hand, is the exact opposite that Márquez is right now. In his last seven starts he has gone 5-1 with an ERA under .50. Horton has wracked up 34 strikeouts and two earned runs after working on the mound for 37 innings in those games. To say he compliments Matthew Boyd well is the understatement of the year and that is why he is the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year.

The year is far from over and they are within spitting distance of the Brewers. The time is now to find the Cubs team that fans saw at the beginning of the season. October is not far off and the pitching staff alone cannot carry the team deep into the playoffs.

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Maddy Dickens
MADDY DICKENS

Maddy Dickens resides in Loveland, Colorado. She grew up with two older brothers, where their lives revolved around sports. She earned a master's degree in business management from Tarleton State University while simultaneously playing basketball and competing in rodeo at the collegiate level. She successfully parlayed a reserve national championship into a professional rodeo career and now stays involved in upper-level athletics by writing for On SI on several different MLB teams' pages, along with some NCAA sites.

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