Game Recap: Horton flashes potential as Cubs top Mets

Gregory Fisher - USA Today Sports

Dustin Riese - Senior Writer - 21 hours ago

QUEENS - In one of the most highly anticipated Chicago Cubs (23-17) debuts in quite some time, at least from a pitching side of things, RHP Cade Horton made his MLB debut at Citi Field on Saturday Night. Although Horton didn't start the game, he still played a massive role in ending the Cubs' three-game losing streak as the No. 2 organizational prospect showed just how good he can be against an excellent New York Mets (25-15) team.

Horton gave the Cubs four innings of work, allowing four hits and striking out five to earn his first career win in his first career appearance. He did allow three runs, with all of those coming on one swing from Brett Baty as the Cubs led this one from start to finish before holding on for the 6-5 win.

Going up against Tylor Megill, the Cubs made one massive lineup change as Ian Happ was given the night off. That meant that Pete Crow-Armstrong would take his turn at the leadoff spot, and with a leadoff single to begin the game, PCA did what the Cubs were hoping he would do. More often than not, when PCA gets on first, he turns things into a double, which was the case here as he stole his 13th base of the season to move into scoring position.

Following a Kyle Tucker walk to put a pair of runners on base, Seiya Suzuki came through as his RBI single put the Cubs in front for good, 1-0. Justin Turner would also work a walk later in the inning as the Cubs had Megill on the ropes with the bases loaded and one down. These are the situations the Cubs need to capitalize on, and despite not doing a ton of damage, Dansby Swanson did add a second RBI single later in the inning to put the Cubs in front 2-0.

Everyone, the plan for this game was to start Brad Keller and eventually go to Horton at some point. Keller did his job by picking up a pair of first-inning strikeouts, as it was time for Horton to take the mound for the first time as a Cub. The right-hander couldn't have asked for a better start to his MLB career, striking out the first batter he faced before retiring the side in order as he was off and running instantly.

Looking to build on their lead in the third, Suzuki delivered his second hit in as many at-bats as his double set the Cubs offense up in a great spot. A few pitches later, Michael Busch cashed in for the Cubs' third RBI single of the game to push their lead to 3-0. Chicago continued to build on their lead in the fourth with Swanson coming through with another solo shot as the Cubs opened up a 4-0 lead in the fourth.

As good as Horton was early on, this is an extremely tough lineup to navigate through, and you started to see signs of that in the bottom of the fourth as a pair of singles from Pete Alonso and Mark Vientos set the Mets up with two on and one out. Both runners managed to move up 90 feet on a wild pitch, but with two outs in the inning, Horton was one pitch away from escaping trouble.

That was until Baty connected for his first of two homers in the game and second homer of the series as his three-run blast pulled the Mets within 4-3. Horton managed to get through one more inning before seeing his night come to an end, but with a 4-3 lead through five, he was in line to pick up the win.

By the time the sixth inning rolled around, it was now down to the bullpens as Drew Pomeranz was the first man in relief for Craig Counsell as his scoreless start to the season continued. That led to Daniel Palencia taking over in the seventh, and this was when the game changed in a big way. Not only did Palencia allow a one-out single to Tyrone Taylor, but with Francisco Lindor taking a walk shortly after the Mets had the tying run in scoring position and the meat of their lineup coming up.

When you talk about big-time moments, this was the moment the Cubs have been waiting for from Palencia as he not only got Juan Soto to strikeout, but followed that up with an inning-ending RBI groundout to keep the Cubs in front entering the eighth. Expecting to see the teeth of the Mets lineup one more time, the Cubs knew they needed a bit more offense to put the game away, and with Busch working a one-out walk against Max Kranick, the Cubs had the baserunner they were looking for.

Throw in a two-out single from Nico Hoerner and a walk from Swanson, and it was the Cubs loading the bases as this was their best scoring chance since the early innings. Had Carson Kelly not taken a pitch off the hand on Friday, he may have gotten a pinch-hit opportunity in this spot, but with that out of the equation, it was down to Miguel Amaya to get the job done.

As rough as things have gone for Amaya since joining the Cubs, hitting with the bases loaded has been his strength, as his two-run single not only put the Cubs in front 6-3, but it improved his career numbers with the bases loaded to 6-12. That would also go down as the game-winning hit as Baty delivered his second homer off Julian Merryweather in the bottom of the eighth to pull the Mets within 6-5.

Still holding that one-run lead entering the bottom of the ninth, it would be up to Porter Hodge to keep it that way, as he is now taking over the closer role from Ryan Pressly. Hodge has been erratic at times this season, but he has also been dominant at other times, which is what the Cubs have been waiting to see.

Even after walking Jeff McNeil to lead things off, you never had the feeling of doubt as Hodge induced a huge double play from Lindor and brought Soto to the plate with the bases empty. Usually, this would be one of those situations where the Cubs would pitch around Soto, knowing there was no margin for error. Instead, Hodge went right after Soto and got him to roll into a softly hit inning-ending ground out as the Cubs ended their three-game winning streak with a 6-5 victory.

Chicago had nine hits in the win, with Suzuki, Busch, and Swanson picking up six hits and combining for four RBIs. The Cubs also struck out 12 batters in the victory, walking only two batters. The Cubs will have to be ready to go quickly as they will look to take the series finale tomorrow morning when they send Matthew Boyd to the mound against Griffin Canning.