Tucker Returns to Houston but Cam Smith May Haunt the Cubs for Years

The Tucker Trade Was for Now — Cam Smith is Looking Like the Future!

Daikin Park after the Houston Astros 7-4 win over the Chicago Cubs

HOUSTON — Kyle Tucker returned to Houston for the first time since the blockbuster trade that sent him to Chicago in exchange for RHP Hayden Wesneski, third baseman Isaac Paredes, and the 14th overall pick in 2024, Cam Smith. The 2022 World Series champion, 3x All-Star and phase two finalist for the 2025 “Midsummer Classic” in Atlanta keeps a low profile and lets his work do the talking. Intentional or not, his reserved nature hasn’t kept him from making a smooth transition to Chicago.

“It’s been awesome. Ever since I’ve been there they’ve been super welcoming — whether it’s the front office or the guys and the same can be said about the fan base. It’s been a pretty easy and smooth transition. It’s been a lot of fun to play in front of that crowd, the fan base and the city itself with the whole history behind the city and the team. It’s been really fun to be a part of,” Tucker said.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell emphasized the importance of letting Tucker be himself and credited the Astros for setting that tone early in his career.

"He's a quiet guy off the field. He loves being in the clubhouse with his teammates — he doesn't like talking to you guys, Sorry if I'm breaking news there,” Counsell joked. “Not that he doesn't like it...he just doesn't enjoy it. I think the Astros did a really good job of letting him be himself and I think we try to let all of our guys do that in the context of who we are as a group. But I think this group understands who Kyle is and that's how we help each other."

Tucker got a loud ovation before his first at-bat, with a group of fans in the right-field stands wearing crowns in honor of “King Tuck.“ His day at the dish wasn’t as loud — he went 0-for-4 — but delivered the defensive gem of the game. Isaac Paredes tried to score from second on a Jake Meyers single in the bottom of the first, but Tucker made a near-perfect throw from right field to nail him at the plate and keep the game scoreless.

A sacrifice fly and a pair of three-run homers later, the Astros jumped out to a 7–0 lead and never looked back, spoiling Tucker’s return to Houston. The Cubs chipped away and cut the deficit to 7–4, but couldn’t string enough offense together late.

The Astros put traffic on the bases in each of Cade Horton’s four innings, tagging him for a season- and career-high seven runs, eight hits, and four walks in his eighth big league start. His two strikeouts and four innings tied season lows.

"I got my ass kicked today," Horton said. "It was the first time I felt like I wasn't able to slow the game down. I let my emotions get the best of me today and I've just gotta learn from it and move on. I've been in this spot before — just gotta take it with a grain of salt, learn some things from it and move on."

Horton’s 17% strikeout rate through 45 innings is down nearly 50% from the 32% mark he posted over 151 innings in Triple-A. I asked Counsell if he and his staff had noticed anything mechanically in this small sample — or if it simply comes down to facing much better hitters in the big leagues.

"The hitters are what's happening. These are the best hitters in the world. Cade's had a wonderful start to his big league career. He's thrown a lot of strikes, he's gonna get strikeouts in his career and he's gonna get weak contact because of the way the fastball moves. It's tough to strike out big league hitters. This lineup isn't a lineup that strikes out. This is a super aggressive lineup so the execution from pitch one is really important."

Cam Smith had himself a night. Facing the team that drafted him for the first time, the 22-year-old took it personally — unloading on a Cade Horton fastball in the fourth for a three-run homer. He finished 2-for-2 with two walks and three RBI. Through 68 games, Smith is hitting .277 with six home runs, 31 RBI, and a .773 OPS.

When it’s all said and done with Tucker’s likely one year in Chicago, the question will linger: who won the trade? If the Cubs come up short of a World Series and Cam Smith continues trending up, the answer will not favor Chicago.