Top Chicago Cubs prospect Matt Shaw got into his first spring game action yesterday, playing third base and taking a few at bats. Shaw had been slowed by an oblique injury, and the Cubs certainly weren’t going to rush him back on an accelerated timeline solely because the season starts early for them in Japan. If the timing didn’t work, it didn’t work. Long-term health and success have been the priority.
So, one game in, how did it feel for Shaw?
Shaw talked about his first game back after the oblique injury (he’s 100% now, he says), and about continuing to develop at third base:
Great to hear all of it, and you hope that the ramp up continues without issue from here. The plan is for Shaw to get today off, and then be back in game action tomorrow.
The question folks will have, and the one that can’t be answered just yet: will Matt Shaw be ready in time for Japan, and will he be going?
“I think I’ve put a lot of time and effort to be ready for this situation,” Shaw said, per Cubs.com. “But it’s out of my hands. So I’m going to keep trying to do what I do every day and be consistent, and if I get the opportunity to go [to Tokyo], I’ll be overjoyed. And if not, that’s just part of the process.”
We have to remember that this injury worked against Shaw in two distinct ways when it comes to the season-opening series in Tokyo: (1) there is the ramp up to general season readiness – he is now working on a very abbreviated timeline; and (2) there is the opportunity for him to show he is ready to be the big league Cubs’ starting third baseman on day one. Although that has been the expectation since Isaac Paredes was traded, the front office and coaching staff have always indicated that Shaw would still have to show he’s ready for the job. Given his limited minor league experience, and relatively limited time at third base, I don’t think that’s just posturing either. I think the Cubs really did want to see where Shaw stood at this moment in time before making a firm decision on third base for the opener. The oblique injury threw a bit of a wrench in that.
Which isn’t to say there isn’t still enough time. Generally, position players don’t need THAT much spring game activity to be ready, and it’s entirely possible that with a few more game appearances in Arizona, plus the exhibition games in Japan, could have Shaw ready for the opener against the Dodgers.
(By the way, I want to reiterate that Shaw missing Japan does NOT completely exclude him from being eligible for the Prospect Promotion Incentive. Wrote about that at length here, if you missed it.)
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