NEW YORK — No pitch works very well without conviction. If a pitcher’s heart isn’t in it, if he doesn’t truly believe in his choice, he’s in trouble. This is especially true of the changeup because the dominant index finger is merely along for the ride. The other fingers do the steering.
Now imagine throwing the first changeup of your major-league career in a packed stadium on a Saturday night in New York City. Your wife is there. So are your parents, your four siblings, your grandparents and your friends. You’ve thrown 71 pitches already, your lead is down to a run, and the batter is a $765 million slugger with the best eye in the sport.
To throw that pitch, in that situation, you’d need an audacious level of trust. Think of new parents strapping their firstborn into the car seat for the ride home from the hospital. This is how Cade Horton arrived, safe and sound, in the major leagues.
Horton, the Chicago Cubs’ heralded 23-year-old right-hander, won his debut over the Mets 6-5 by outsmarting the great Juan Soto. With one out, one on and the bullpen in action behind him in the fifth inning, Horton picked a 2-2 count to throw his changeup to Soto.
The pitch flopped down and away as Soto flailed at it, tentatively; the great ones seldom swing so awkwardly. The…
