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3 pitchers who will have expanded roles after Caleb Kilian's injury
The Chicago Cubs received bad news about Caleb Kilian this week, one of their depth starters from the minor leagues
The Chicago Cubs got some bad news on Thursday as MRI results for starting pitcher Caleb Kilian showed a shoulder strain that will sideline him until the All-Star break. As one of the main depth starting pitchers in the organization, Kilian's injury is not ideal but it will give opportunities for these three pitchers to seize opportunities in the coming months.
1. Ben Brown
2024 is all but certain to be the year where right-handed pitcher Ben Brown makes his MLB debut. He was acquired by the Cubs at the 2022 trade deadline in exchange for former closer David Robertson. Since then, he has climbed his way to the Triple-A team where he threw 92.2 innings last year. Standing at 6'6, Brown's fastball tops out at 99 mph and is complemented by a plus slider and curveball.
All three of Brown's pitches have grades of 60 (out of 80) according to MLB pipeline and he is ranked as the Cubs' no. 11 prospect. Although his pitches yield a high strikeout rate (130 in 92.2 innings last year), Brown has had control issues in the past and he issued 57 walks last year. This has brought up questions of whether he can sustain being a starter in the majors, but he should get an opportunity at some point this year with Kilian not in front of him on the depth chart.
Brown has looked sharp in his three appearances in Spring Training so far and I would expect him to get some starts this year, especially if the big league rotation gets hit with injuries. Even if he doesn't succeed as a starter, Brown should prove to be a more than capable bullpen piece with his above-average stuff.
2. Hayden Wesneski
Wesneski will get another opportunity to prove himself in 2024, but it may be do-or-die time as far as his role as a starter with the Cubs is concerned. After winning the fifth spot in the starting rotation last year, things went downhill rather quickly. By the end of May, Wesneski had lost his position in the rotation and was optioned to Triple-A.
Wesneski had more success as a reliever but the 26-year-old is no doubt eager to prove himself as a starter again. And he'll get a chance at some point relatively soon. It's extremely unlikely that he will make the opening day starting rotation with Drew Smyly and Jordan Wicks more logical candidates. I wouldn't be surprised if Wesneski begins the season in Triple-A, depending on the bullpen decisions yet to be made by manager Craig Counsell.
But injuries to the starting rotation have to be expected, meaning Wesneski will get his chance sooner or later. He has a lot to prove but hopefully, he has made sufficient adjustments to make his stuff work at the big-league level. If he doesn't pitch well this year, the Cubs will have to consider moving him to the bullpen full-time or packaging him in a trade.
3. Cade Horton
Cade Horton was the Cubs' first-round draft pick from 2022, and he stormed his way through the minor league system in his first year in professional baseball in 2023. In 21 starts across Low--A, High-A, and Double-A, Horton amassed 88.1 innings and 117 strikeouts with a stellar 2.65 ERA. By May or June, Horton will likely have already made his way to Triple-A where will be knocking on the big-league door.
I don't think Caleb Kilian was a massive roadblock in Horton's path to the big leagues, especially if he continues to dominate as he did last year. But Kilian's injury certainly removes one more name from the starting pitching depth for the time being.
Horton is very highly regarded by experts, and three of his pitches have earned plus grades from MLB pipeline. At just 22 years old, the sky is the limit for Horton as the big league team is in need of an ace-level hurler.
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