MIAMI — Third baseman Matt Shaw had a pretty clear understanding of what he needed to work on when the Chicago Cubs optioned their top prospect to Triple A last month.
For Shaw, the necessary adjustments started with reducing his leg kick, creating a more upright posture and finding consistency with his timing. He had discussed the diminished leg kick initially with manager Craig Counsell and the big-league hitting coaches during his first stint in the majors as well as with the hitting coaches in Iowa.
“They’ve seen enough baseball to know I can be a little more consistent with a little smaller leg kick, and I think they’re right,” Shaw said Monday. “So it’s something that I’m going to continue to do and see how it goes.”
The tweaks resulted in the type of production the Cubs wanted to see at Triple A — especially his power production — before giving him another big-league opportunity. Shaw posted back-to-back two-homer games for Iowa on Thursday and Friday and collected eight hits in his last four games to earn a call-up to the Cubs before Monday’s series opener against the Miami Marlins.
The Cubs designated infielder Nicky Lopez for assignment to open a spot on the active roster.
“Overall, just taking a step back and kind of being able to take a breath and stuff was really nice,” Shaw said. “The first month of the season or so was pretty overwhelming with Japan and everything going on, so it’s definitely nice to take a breath back in Triple A and get a couple things moving in the right direction and to be back.”
When the Cubs optioned Shaw, 23, to Iowa last month, Counsell and president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer both expressed optimism that Shaw would return after a reset and chance to get back on track in a lower-pressure environment. They viewed him as a potential everyday player at third base, a confidence in his long-term future that didn’t waver despite the demotion.
“Obviously it’s up to me to perform and to play well and to put myself in a good position,” Shaw said. “So hopefully I continue to do that, and then it makes their job easier.”
Counsell hinted at the move Sunday after the Cubs swept the White Sox in the opening round of the City Series at Wrigley Field, and it became official Monday.
After Shaw hit two home runs for Iowa on Thursday, Counsell was asked if the team’s top-ranked prospect had proved he is ready.
“Look, we’re trying to win games and we’re trying to put a player in a good position to succeed,” Counsell said. “So I don’t think there is any certainty in any of that. There’s a time hopefully we’re going to be able to say, ‘Yes, let’s give this a shot again.’”
Shaw hit two more home runs Friday night, and general manager Carter Hawkins told the Tribune on Saturday that the 23-year-old would be up “sooner than later.”
Now they’ll see if the minor tweaks that led to success in Triple A can translate to the majors. Shaw hit .172 in 18 games with the Cubs after making the opening-day roster, with 18 strikeouts in 58 at-bats. He had a short spring training due to an oblique issue that delayed his start, but he was thrown into the starting lineup after the Cubs failed to sign free agent Alex Bregman.
Progress often isn’t linear for young players, and sometimes that means getting sent back to the minors. Shaw isn’t the first notable Cubs prospect to experience that and won’t be the last. Ian Happ experienced that test in 2019 after spending most of the previous two seasons in the majors.
“He handled it really well,” Happ said Monday of Shaw. “The attitude and who he is as a person, he’s happy to be back, but he handled being down there really well and I think we all expected that.”
After his demotion, Shaw hit .286 with six home runs, 14 RBIs and a .970 OPS in 24 games at Iowa, and his recent power surge showed he was ready for a second chance in the majors.
The Cubs sent Pete Crow-Armstrong down last year after the center fielder struggled offensively. Crow-Armstrong quickly returned and took a couple of months to figure things out before blossoming in the second half of 2024.
Crow-Armstrong is now a likely National League All-Star and an early Most Valuable Player candidate. The Cubs are hoping lightning strikes twice with Shaw, whom Baseball America ranked No. 35 on its Top 100 prospects list before the 2025 season.
“It’s hard to struggle on a big stage and not lose confidence and not question yourself,” Hoyer said, “and so I think that’s what we look for. As long as he’s playing his game and isn’t losing confidence, I think the struggle can really help them.
“And I do think we constantly have discussions about players struggling in the minors and in the big leagues. It’s part of what you go through because our best players go through 1-for-20, 2-for-30 slumps all the time. They have to learn how to get out of it without changing everything, and I think that’s really important.
“So making sure they don’t lose their confidence, they don’t stop being themselves. As long as they’re doing that, I think they can stay here and make those adjustments here.”
Lopez was 1-for-18 (.056) in 14 games for the Cubs, including five starts. The 30-year-old veteran from Naperville was one of four players who rotated at third base during Shaw’s demotion.
Gage Workman was DFA’d and dealt to the White Sox, who later released him. Vidal Bruján and Jon Berti will remain as bench players, with Shaw expected to get the bulk of the starts at third.
Sullivan reported from Chicago.
