Cubs and Guardians Playing Easter Doubleheader Sunday After Saturday Rainout in Cleveland

Mother Nature forced the Cubs and Guardians to hit pause Saturday, but these teams aren't wasting any time making it up. After thunderstorms rolled into Cleveland and wiped out their scheduled matchup, both squads agreed to play a traditional doubleheader on Easter Sunday instead of dragging out another trip to Chicago later in the season.

The Cubs made the most of the delay. Even though their game got postponed, they wrapped up their scheduled batting practice before the heavy rains arrived and got in some extra on-field work. That's the kind of preparation that could pay off when these teams square off twice on Sunday.

Guardians Banking on Fresh Starters

Cleveland is rolling right now. They've won two straight, including a 4-1 victory Friday in their home opener over Chicago. For Sunday's doubleheader, the Guardians are sending right-hander Slade Cecconi (0-1, 12.46 ERA) to the mound in Game 1 and left-hander Parker Messick (1-0, 0.00 ERA) in the nightcap. Messick hasn't faced the Cubs yet this season.

Guardians manager Stephen Vogt knows the weather in Cleveland can flip on a dime. "Today, I was out in the yard playing Wiffleball in shorts and a T-shirt before coming to the ballpark because it was 80 degrees and beautiful," Vogt said. "When we saw the forecast, we all agreed that we wanted to play both (Sunday), instead of messing around with Chicago having to make another trip here later in the season."

Cubs Dealing With Injury Problems

Chicago's got problems to solve before first pitch. The Cubs placed 2025 NL Rookie of the Year runner-up Cade Horton on the injured list Saturday after he left Friday's game with right forearm discomfort. He only threw 17 pitches and one scoreless inning before exiting. Left-hander Riley Martin was recalled from Triple-A Iowa to help fill the void.

The Cubs are starting right-hander Edward Cabrera (1-0, 0.00 ERA) in Game 1 and left-hander Shota Imanaga (0-1, 7.20 ERA) in Game 2. Vogt has a detailed scouting report on Imanaga. "Imanaga tunnels the ball really well," Vogt said. "We've seen him a couple of times over the last few years and we know when he's executing, he's tough. We've got to lay off the split and can't go chasing him underneath."

Colin Rea, who pitched 3 1/3 innings after Horton was lifted Friday, summed up what Horton means to this team. "Cade is very important to us. Hopefully, he caught it early, and hopefully it's nothing too bad and he doesn't miss too much time."

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.