Cade Horton’s Gem Leads Oklahoma To College World Series Win

Image credit: Oklahoma righthander Cade Horton (Photo courtesy of Oklahoma)

OMAHA – Cade Horton, like Oklahoma itself over the last month, has come on like a runaway Sooner Schooner. The strong righthander has always had plenty of upside and pedigree, but an injury that led to Tommy John surgery just before the start of the 2021 season, his freshman year, continued to slow his progress this season.

Lately, however, Horton has burst forth, turning that potential into results at a time that the Sooners have needed it the most. He did it again Sunday at the College World Series, striking out 11 batters in six innings to help Oklahoma defeat Notre Dame, 6-2, and advance to the bracket final. The Sooners are now one win away from playing for the national title, while the Fighting Irish face an elimination game Tuesday against Texas A&M.

Horton was electric on Sunday night. His fastball got up to 97 mph and his curveball and slider both flummoxed Notre Dame hitters. For good measure, he worked in the occasional changeup. He pounded the strike zone, throwing 69 of his 100 pitches for strikes and walking just one batter. He held the Irish to five hits (three of which came from Carter Putz) and two runs, which both scored on a sixth-inning home run from David LaManna.

It was a standout performance on the biggest stage in a critical game for the Sooners.

“I mean, that guy’s got electric stuff at times,” coach Skip Johnson said. “He’s gotten better every outing. Really proud of him.”

With Horton dealing, Oklahoma’s offense went to work to support him. Peyton Graham went 4-for-4 with two stolen bases, becoming the first player to do so at the CWS since Barry Bonds in 1984. Tanner Tredaway went 3-for-4 and scored twice. In all, Oklahoma pounded out 12 hits and drew six walks and had a 5-0 lead after five innings.

With Horton on the mound, it was more than enough. He carried the Sooners through six innings before turning the ball over to righthander Jared Godman for an inning and then closer Trevin Michael, who slammed the door with two scoreless innings.

It was a masterful performance on the mound all night from Oklahoma, with Horton leading the way. His growth since he arrived in Norman two years ago has been remarkable. He arrived at Oklahoma as a two-way player—and also a quarterback. His time with the football team didn’t last long, as he instead focused on baseball. That fall, he played a lot of infield and pitched a couple innings a week. But, even then, Johnson said Horton was the best freshman pitcher he’d ever been around.

Oklahoma had big plans for Horton for his freshman season. But then injury struck, and he had to miss the 2021 season. Horton worked hard to rehab his injury and get back on the field

“I can remember things that he did in that fall like it was yesterday,” Johnson said. “And then all of a sudden the adversity hits him, and he really started working.”

Horton still wasn’t ready to pitch at the start of the season. He played third base instead, and continued to work to get back on the mound. By the end of March, he was ready, and he debuted with one inning against Oklahoma State. Slowly, he built up and eventually moved into the Sooners’ rotation.

While Horton wasn’t immediately ready to work deep into games, his presence was critical. Without him, Oklahoma was an arm or two short on the mound. But Johnson always knew that if the Sooners could get Horton back at his best, it would give them a big boost.

The development hasn’t always been linear. In his last two starts of the regular season, he seemed to take a step back, giving up a total of 13 runs on 16 hits in 6.1 innings against West Virginia and Texas Tech. His rough day against the Red Raiders on the final day of the regular season cost the Sooners a share of the Big 12 title.

Since that day, however, Horton has been locked in at the top of his game. The next week in the Big 12 Tournament championship game, he held Texas to one run on two hits and two walks in 5.1 innings. He struck out nine batters and earned the win for the Sooners. In his start in both regionals and super regionals, he turned in quality starts in the difficult road environments of Gainesville and Blacksburg.

Sunday was his masterpiece, however. On the sport’s biggest stage, he quieted a Notre Dame offense that has in recent weeks rolled through Georgia Southern, Texas Tech, Tennessee and Texas. He never allowed the Irish to get comfortable at the plate thanks to his ability to mix his pitches and command his secondary stuff.

“He had a good fastball, and he didn’t seem to be throwing it a lot,” LaManna said. “He was living with his offspeed stuff. His slider was tough to pick up. And I mean he did a good job. He had a good fastball and good secondary stuff, and he was in the zone the whole day.”

Horton’s slider is a new development. He only added it to his arsenal in the aftermath of his start at Texas Tech when teammate Ben Abram worked with him in the bullpen.

“He gave me the confidence to throw it in a game,” Horton said. “And it’s been working ever since.”

Horton has a lot of pure athletic ability. In high school, he piled up yards and touchdowns on the gridiron and excelled both as a hitter and pitcher on the diamond. Listed at 6-foot-1, 211 pounds, he has power in everything he does.

So, the game comes easy to Horton. But adding a slider with such ease? That’s part of what makes him special to Johnson, who has mentored plenty of high-end pitchers throughout his career in the game, which included 10 years as Augie Garrido’s pitching coach at Texas.

“I think with his ability, I think he could pick it up really fast,” Johnson said. “It’s no different than watching a big leaguer, how quick they can pick stuff up. And I’m not saying he’s a big leaguer, by no means, but he’ll have that opportunity one day.”

That opportunity could be coming sooner than later. Horton turns 21 in August, making him eligible for this summer’s draft, even as a redshirt freshman. The combination of his stuff and his postseason performance—he’s struck out 36 batters and walked six in 23.2 innings—has him as one of the buzziest names on draft boards.

Horton is difficult to evaluate, however. Scouts have a long track record with him thanks to his prolific high school career, but he’s thrown just 46.1 innings in college. He spent a lot of this season as a two-way player, so there’s mystery as to what he’ll look like over a full season as a full-time pitcher. Investing as much money and draft capital as it might take to sign him is risky. But passing on him might be risky, too—it’s easy to envision a scenario where he comes back to Oklahoma in 2023, fronts the Sooners rotation all season and goes in the top 10 picks.

For Horton and the Sooners, those are worries for July. For now, he will be hoping he gets to take the ball again in Omaha, preferably with the national title on the line. It’s a scenario that would have seemed farfetched less than a month ago. But the way Horton has worked and the hot streak he and his teammates have ridden to this moment has created the possibility.

“It just shows you what he’s about,” Johnson said. “The guy works, and he wants to be great at what he does.”