CHICAGO — Cubs No. 2 prospect Cade Horton has been waiting in the wings for a while now.

Selected No. 7 overall in the 2022 MLB Draft, the right-hander long has been the best pitcher in the Cubs’ farm system, and when Shota Imanaga landed on the 15-day IL with a left hamstring strain, all eyes turned to a potential call-up. Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer addressed that possibility Monday, saying Horton is one of several options being considered to join the rotation in Imanaga’s place.

Horton pitched 34 1/3 innings between Double-A Knoxville and Triple-A Iowa in 2024 before a shoulder strain sidelined him for the season. Now healthy, he has been excellent this season with the I-Cubs, posting a 1.24 ERA with 33 strikeouts in 29 innings pitched.

Hoyer had high praise for Horton, saying “I think he’s continued to get better from start to start, and he’s been consistently good down there. He’s done his part in Triple-A and has certainly thrown the ball well.”

But Horton isn’t taking Imanaga’s spot on the active roster just yet.

The Cubs instead recalled right-handed reliever Gavin Hollowell, a proven arm with 35 major league appearances under his belt between Chicago and the Colorado Rockies. Hollowell was excellent in his first appearance for the Cubs this season, providing two perfect innings of relief in a wild 11-10 extra-innings win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 22. He added two more scoreless innings Monday night, allowing only one hit to the San Francisco Giants in a 9-2 win.

[READ: Shota Imanaga injury fallout: What comes next for Cubs’ pitching staff?]

The Cubs will need a starter to take Imanaga’s place Saturday against the New York Mets, but both Hoyer and manager Craig Counsell didn’t want to make any definite statements about whether it could be Horton.

“We’re just trying to make sure it’s the right time,” Hoyer said. “I think that it’s easier to work on things in the minors, and he didn’t pitch a lot last year. Had he pitched all last season, he may well have debuted by now.”

Counsell added Horton certainly is “an option” for the Cubs, and there is no hesitancy in having a rookie make his first start against a strong lineup like that of the Mets.

“In a big-league schedule, it’s going to be tough. There are tough lineups,” Counsell said. “Whatever job a Triple-A player does in the big leagues, it’s a harder job.”

Horton has a 2.79 ERA over 152 2/3 innings in his minor league career.

“Obviously, Cade’s an option,” Hoyer said, echoing Counsell’s words. “He’s one of several, and we’ll talk through the right way to go forward.”