Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Cade Horton could still pitch for the team this year, making his return a potential X-factor if the North Siders can get through the National League Division Series without him.
Horton went on the 15-day injured list last Saturday after the team announced he had been trying to work through a fractured rib, an ailment that he mysteriously sustained late in the season. The 24-year-old is not eligible to return until Oct. 10, at the earliest, making Game 5 of the NLDS (if there is one) the earliest he could return.