{"id":173044,"date":"2026-04-04T22:27:41","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T22:27:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044"},"modified":"2026-04-04T22:27:41","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T22:27:41","slug":"%f0%9f%9a%a8-shocking-turn-cubs-make-heart-stopping-decision-on-28-year-old-southpaw-after-cade-horton-update-what-does-this-mean-for-his-future-%f0%9f%91%87-a-pivotal-moment-cubs-make-a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044","title":{"rendered":"\ud83d\udea8 SHOCKING TURN: Cubs Make Heart-Stopping Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton Update \u2014 What Does This Mean for His Future? \ud83d\udc47 A Pivotal Moment: Cubs Make a Game-Changing Call on Their 28-Year-Old Pitcher \u2014 Fans Are On Edge Over This Key Roster Move."},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2200250620.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2200250620.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2200250620.jpg?quality=15&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2200250620.jpg?quality=35&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"Chicago Cubs Make Roster Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton News\" width=\"780\" height=\"520\" \/><\/figure>\n<div>\n<p>Getty<\/p>\n<p>MESA, ARIZONA &#8211; FEBRUARY 17: Riley Martin #94 of the Chicago Cubs poses for a portrait during photo day at Sloan Park on February 17, 2025 in Mesa, Arizona. (Photo by Steph Chambers\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Chicago Cubs will promote southpaw reliever Riley Martin from Triple-A Iowa to the majors, according to multiple reports.<\/p>\n<p>Because starter Cade Horton just went to the Injured List, this is the corresponding move for that, and after four seasons in Triple-A, Riley Martin will likely make his MLB debut for the Cubs. He has a career ERA of 3.76 over 280+ innings and 410 strikeouts in the minors. His journey to professional baseball is a good one.<\/p>\n<p><strong>More MLB on Heavy: Mets Get New Juan Soto Update After Scary Calf Injury Incident<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>Riley Martin\u2019s Journey to MLB<\/h2>\n<div id=\"attachment_5881670\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=354\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 354px) 100vw, 354px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg 3746w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=100,150 100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=200,300 200w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=768,1152 768w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=683,1024 683w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=1024,1536 1024w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=1365,2048 1365w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=354,531 354w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=780,1170 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=425,638 425w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=113,169 113w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263025645.jpg?resize=120,180 120w\" alt=\"Chicago Cubs Make Roster Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton News\" width=\"354\" height=\"531\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5881670\" data-lazy-load=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-5881670\">GettyMESA, ARIZONA \u2013 FEBRUARY 17: Pitcher Riley Martin #94 of the Chicago Cubs poses for a portrait during photo day at Sloan Park on February 17, 2026 in Mesa, Arizona. (Photo by Chris Coduto\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Riley Martin has a pretty unique journey to MLB. First, the 28-year-old has swiftly made his way through the minors despite being 28 when he debuts.<\/p>\n<p>He pitched five seasons at Quincy College, a Division II school.<\/p>\n<p>Per Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network, Riley Martin had planned on going to pharmaceutical school instead of playing professional baseball:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEntering his senior year at Division II Quincy University, the left-handed pitcher had the career school strikeout record and some other records within his sight that he wanted to try and rewrite and then head off into the medical field. He had taken his pharmacy college admission test (PCAT), been accepted at Southern Illinois Edwardsville and registered to start his post-playing career.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/cade-horton-injury-announcement-cubs.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" alt=\"Trent Thornton Splits, News &amp; Bio - Heavy Sports\" \/><\/p>\n<p>During his collegiate years, Martin posted a 3.85 ERA over 308.1 innings and 352 strikeouts.<\/p>\n<p>In 2025, with Triple-A Iowa, Martin posted a 2.97 ERA over 63.2 innings as primarily a reliever.<\/p>\n<p>Because of the Cade Horton injury news, the Cubs may be relying more on their bullpen in the next week, so calling up Riley Martin is a move to give Chicago\u2019s pitching staff another arm to utilize. However, it will be a good story once he officially debuts.<\/p>\n<p><strong>More MLB on Heavy: Tigers Dealt Tough Justin Verlander News During Cardinals Series<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>Riley Martin\u2019s Prospect Status<\/h2>\n<p>MLBTradeRumors.com\u2019s Mark Polishuk was quick to the corresponding move by the Cubs, and explained Martin\u2019s prospect status in the Cubs system:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBaseball America ranked Martin 20th on its list of the top 30 Cubs prospects, while MLB Pipeline has the southpaw 28th on their top-30 ranking.\u00a0 He relies almost entirely on a plus curveball that, as per Pipeline\u2019s scouting report, \u201ccan be devastating at times and also lose some shape and miss the zone by wide margins at others.\u201d\u00a0 In general, Pipeline\u2019s evaluation feels Martin \u201ctrades control for deception\u201d in deploying an upright delivery to maximize the break on his pitches.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Martin\u2019s experience as a longer extended reliever is the reason for his call-up, so it will be interesting to see how Craig Counsell utilizes him.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Getty MESA, ARIZONA &#8211; FEBRUARY 17: Riley Martin #94 of the Chicago Cubs poses for a portrait during photo day at Sloan Park on February 17, 2025&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":173045,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-173044","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>\ud83d\udea8 SHOCKING TURN: Cubs Make Heart-Stopping Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton Update \u2014 What Does This Mean for His Future? \ud83d\udc47 A Pivotal Moment: Cubs Make a Game-Changing Call on Their 28-Year-Old Pitcher \u2014 Fans Are On Edge Over This Key Roster Move. - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\ud83d\udea8 SHOCKING TURN: Cubs Make Heart-Stopping Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton Update \u2014 What Does This Mean for His Future? \ud83d\udc47 A Pivotal Moment: Cubs Make a Game-Changing Call on Their 28-Year-Old Pitcher \u2014 Fans Are On Edge Over This Key Roster Move. - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Getty MESA, ARIZONA &#8211; FEBRUARY 17: Riley Martin #94 of the Chicago Cubs poses for a portrait during photo day at Sloan Park on February 17, 2025...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-04T22:27:41+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtnew.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"MrThanh\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"MrThanh\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044\",\"name\":\"\ud83d\udea8 SHOCKING TURN: Cubs Make Heart-Stopping Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton Update \u2014 What Does This Mean for His Future? \ud83d\udc47 A Pivotal Moment: Cubs Make a Game-Changing Call on Their 28-Year-Old Pitcher \u2014 Fans Are On Edge Over This Key Roster Move. - NEWS USA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtnew.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-04T22:27:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-04T22:27:41+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/850fd1b8bcb1d322b7f0a04b3d2f18ec\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtnew.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtnew.jpg\",\"width\":1080,\"height\":1080},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"\ud83d\udea8 SHOCKING TURN: Cubs Make Heart-Stopping Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton Update \u2014 What Does This Mean for His Future? \ud83d\udc47 A Pivotal Moment: Cubs Make a Game-Changing Call on Their 28-Year-Old Pitcher \u2014 Fans Are On Edge Over This Key Roster Move.\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"NEWS USA\",\"description\":\"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/850fd1b8bcb1d322b7f0a04b3d2f18ec\",\"name\":\"MrThanh\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8c8f2d90ff2a21a61a5e6bc0619622a5021fc65353885d9d7b3db1c8c7c1ca8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8c8f2d90ff2a21a61a5e6bc0619622a5021fc65353885d9d7b3db1c8c7c1ca8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"MrThanh\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=6\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"\ud83d\udea8 SHOCKING TURN: Cubs Make Heart-Stopping Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton Update \u2014 What Does This Mean for His Future? \ud83d\udc47 A Pivotal Moment: Cubs Make a Game-Changing Call on Their 28-Year-Old Pitcher \u2014 Fans Are On Edge Over This Key Roster Move. - NEWS USA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"\ud83d\udea8 SHOCKING TURN: Cubs Make Heart-Stopping Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton Update \u2014 What Does This Mean for His Future? \ud83d\udc47 A Pivotal Moment: Cubs Make a Game-Changing Call on Their 28-Year-Old Pitcher \u2014 Fans Are On Edge Over This Key Roster Move. - NEWS USA","og_description":"Getty MESA, ARIZONA &#8211; FEBRUARY 17: Riley Martin #94 of the Chicago Cubs poses for a portrait during photo day at Sloan Park on February 17, 2025...","og_url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044","og_site_name":"NEWS USA","article_published_time":"2026-04-04T22:27:41+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1080,"height":1080,"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtnew.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"MrThanh","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"MrThanh","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044","name":"\ud83d\udea8 SHOCKING TURN: Cubs Make Heart-Stopping Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton Update \u2014 What Does This Mean for His Future? \ud83d\udc47 A Pivotal Moment: Cubs Make a Game-Changing Call on Their 28-Year-Old Pitcher \u2014 Fans Are On Edge Over This Key Roster Move. - NEWS USA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtnew.jpg","datePublished":"2026-04-04T22:27:41+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-04T22:27:41+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/850fd1b8bcb1d322b7f0a04b3d2f18ec"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtnew.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtnew.jpg","width":1080,"height":1080},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=173044#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"\ud83d\udea8 SHOCKING TURN: Cubs Make Heart-Stopping Decision on 28-Year-Old Southpaw After Cade Horton Update \u2014 What Does This Mean for His Future? \ud83d\udc47 A Pivotal Moment: Cubs Make a Game-Changing Call on Their 28-Year-Old Pitcher \u2014 Fans Are On Edge Over This Key Roster Move."}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/","name":"NEWS USA","description":"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/850fd1b8bcb1d322b7f0a04b3d2f18ec","name":"MrThanh","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8c8f2d90ff2a21a61a5e6bc0619622a5021fc65353885d9d7b3db1c8c7c1ca8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8c8f2d90ff2a21a61a5e6bc0619622a5021fc65353885d9d7b3db1c8c7c1ca8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"MrThanh"},"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=6"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/173044","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=173044"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/173044\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":173046,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/173044\/revisions\/173046"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/173045"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=173044"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=173044"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=173044"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}