Chicago Cubs: Matt Shaw, super sub, has been silently killing it this year

The Chicago Cubs shored up their roster this past offseason with the signing of three-time All-Star third baseman Alex Bregman. With the free agent acquisition, the team would head into the 2026 season with an infield full of Gold Glove-level defensive talent.

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The odd man out of that equation was third baseman Matt Shaw.

The Cubs’ 2023 first round draft pick struggled offensively at the very beginning of his major league run last season, necessitating a return to Triple-A Iowa. Upon returning to Chicago, though, Shaw started showing signs of coming around. By the end of the year, most thought that he had proven enough to earn the third base gig. His defense was excellent and his bat was inching close to league average—two very promising realities for a rookie.

But then the Cubs grabbed Bregman on a 5-year, $175 million deal and Shaw was pushed off to a super utility role.

Matt Shaw: Super Sub

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So far this season, the 24-year-old has played third base, second base, first base, and all three outfield positions. He’s also pinch hit. Of the Cubs’ 29 games so far, Shaw has seen playing time in 26 of them.

But, most important, the sophomore major leaguer has actually been across-the-board good.

As of this writing, Shaw is slashing .292/.338/.462 and has notched 2 home runs and 9 RBIs while stealing 2 bases. He’s also been surprisingly good with the glove, especially considering that he had no experience at first base and only very limited experience in the outfield prior to this year.

After the Cubs brought Bregman aboard, Shaw was understandably concerned about his role with the team. He now seems settled into the fact that his role could be any role on any given day.

“It’s definitely good to know,” Shaw recently told MLB.com. “It definitely was an adjustment figuring out my routines and things like that, but I feel like I’m in a good place now…It’s nice coming to the park knowing about what it’s going to look like for that given day.”

“So far, so good”

To his credit, the young talent took his move away from a starting gig with maturity and just went about the business of being the best player he could be.

“Matt showed in Spring Training, to me,” manager Craig Counsell said, “that he was going to succeed in this role by kind of the way he took to everything we put in front of him. I don’t know if I’m really surprised by that. I think Matt passed that test for me in Spring Training. There’s still new things being put in front of Matt. And by nature, too – I mean, he’s a young player – there’s going to be new things put in front of you as a young player.

“I think it’s gone as expected and kind of as we thought. I think the playing time has kind of been as expected. We’ll have injuries that will put him into more playing time – I’m sure of that. But so far, so good.”

With Bregman locked in for 5 years and the recently extended Nico Hoerner locked in for 6 years at second base, it looks as though Shaw will eventually be headed to a full-time corner outfield spot as soon as next year. Left fielder Ian Happ and right fielder Seiya Suzuki will both be eligible for free agency at the end of this season and the Cubs aren’t expected to keep both.

Whatever the case, Shaw has been looking sharp and ready to go.

The post Chicago Cubs: Matt Shaw, super sub, has been silently killing it this year appeared first on ChiCitySports.

Source: https://www.chicitysports.com/chicago-cubs-matt-shaw-super-utility-craig-counsell/