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The Chicago Cubs need a third baseman, and prospect Matt Shaw is going to have a chance to earn the job, team president Jed Hoyer said on Tuesday.
Hoyer met with the media via Zoom where he was asked about the team's plan at the hot corner, according to Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune. Hoyer said Shaw would get a “long look.”
“He has to earn that job. I'm not going to gift him that on a conference call in the middle of December,” he added.
Hoyer also indicated that Michael Busch, who has 14 games of third base experience in his brief major-league career, would not be an option. The team instead sees him as a Gold Glove-level first baseman. In 152 games with the Cubs in 2024, his age 26 season, Busch hit .248 with 21 home runs and a .775 OPS.
The Cubs' third base hole opened up when the team dealt Isaac Paredes to the Houston Astros in the trade that landed them Kyle Tucker. It was a move that not only upgraded the Cubs' lineup but also gave the team some space to maneuver with several highly rated prospects knocking on the big-league door, Shaw included.
Why it's ‘hard to bet against' Cubs prospect Matt Shaw
Shaw played 121 games in the minors last year between Double-A and Triple-A. Over 35 games with Triple-A Iowa, the No. 13 pick in the 2023 MLB Draft slashed .298/.395/.534. His scouting report via MLB Pipeline gives Cubs fans plenty of reasons to be excited.
“He has no discernible weakness, thriving against both lefties and righties and against all types of pitches,” the report reads. “He uses the entire field well, and his solid power plays to all parts of the park.”
The Athletic spoke with a source around the Cubs shortly after the Tucker trade and writers Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma got the sense that the team is just as bullish on Shaw.
“Shaw may not be a polished third baseman at this early stage of his career, but a team source said it’s hard to bet against a player with that much focus as well as more athleticism than he gets credit for,” they wrote.
They also pointed out that the team might want to put Shaw on the Opening Day roster regardless of whether he's earned the third base job.
“The Cubs are expected to create at least some competition at third base rather than simply hand Shaw a job,” the story continued. “But as a league source pointed out, the Cubs could put Shaw on their Opening Day roster and hope his rookie performance nets an additional draft pick under Major League Baseball’s Prospect Promotion Incentive.”
