Cage is a defensive character ranked around #9 out of 12. He is best played from just outside sweep distance. You want to duck a whole lot so you can throw Shadow Kick's out of nowhere. Duck, step back, duck, step forward, duck, waiting for an opportunity while throwing sweeps here and there. Always baiting.
Sweeps are average, same framecount and recovery as Male Ninjas. Once you land one, close the distance and play Cage's excellent jab game mixed with more sweeps and Close HP's.
Low Kick is pretty short, if you can get one then you're better off doing a Shadow Kick.
High Kick has good range and can snuff out most jumping attacks provided you are at the correct distance, but you should be playing from a ducking
position and his uppercut is WAY superior.
Roundhouse is terrible, don't use it.
Uppercut is very good, it hits really high like Liu's and can hit Mileena out of her Telekick if scouted.
Jump Punch is only good for corner combos to keep your opponent airborne longer for more punishment, aside from that don't use them.
Jump Kick is very good. Male Ninjas and Baraka can Roundhouse you with ease though so watchout. Use it slightly outside of jump range so your feet are what hits and not your whole sprite. But make sure that you block the possible incoming sweep and counter with your own or simply walk back and play your waiting game.
Close HP. Cage does a midrange strike that recovers very fast and should be abused if you are close. Mix this up with jabs if they are actively blocking, but if you suspect they are going to escape, sweep them and walk up to repeat the pressure.
Close Kick. Cage kicks his leg straight up which, if it hits, pops his opponent up for a juggle. Midscreen, you can combo a Shadow Kick, but the corner, you can get a whole lot more. It is a VERY risky move to do because if it's blocked you can be hit with virtually anything your opponent wants.
Jabs. Cage's LP's are decent, they hit all characters who are in a ducking block except for Shang and himself. His HP's are used in the same manner as Lao and Baraka by starting with LP then doing a few HP's.
Throw. Cage grabs his opponent and throws them down behind him causing them to bounce away. You want to walk with them as they bounce and sweep them for extra chip damage.
Shadow Kick. A very fast move that hits high and is relatively safe on block. The only specials that can hit you after it is blocked, to my knowledge, are Scorpion's Spear and Mileena's Roll. Only use this as a surprise move, preferrably from a ducking position. This is Cage's best punisher.
Shadow Uppercut. Unless you KNOW that your opponent is going to jump at you, do not use this move. If you try to use it on reaction, you will get hit more often than not. It has a very short range and is pretty much useless.
Projectile. Cage has two fireballs, a low arching one and a high arching one. You should be mixing these up from close to full screen distance. This tactic really annoys opponents because if you are good at anticipating when they will try to jump, you can do this all match. Using fireballs are a good way to bait your opponent into doing special moves to get close to you to make you stop and you can capitalize greatly on this. A couple things to watch for, Sub-Zero ducks under your fireballs at midrange when he throws his Iceball...NEVER use them against Scorpion unless he has just teleported.
Low Blow. Sort of a novelty move, Cage does the splits and punches male opponents in the groin. You don't get any guaranteed hits after this connects, but you get the opportunity for some good chip damage. Lay in on the jabs and Close HP's after this connects.
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