Chicago Cubs Top Prospect Starting To Rake in Minor Leagues After Rough Stretch

The Chicago Cubs made a controversial move earlier this month which may now be proving to have been the right call.

After top prospect Matt Shaw made the Opening Day roster as the team's starting third baseman, the hopes to see him break onto the scene as a rookie from fans were high.

Though there were some real flashes of the talent he began to show in the minor leagues over the last two seasons, the overall numbers simply were not there.

During the first 18 games of his MLB career, Shaw had a slash line of .172/.294/.241 with one home run, three RBI and just 10 hits.

When a rookie -- especially a high-profile one -- is struggling like this, it's always a debate as to whether to let him work things out in the Major Leagues or to send him back down and allow him to regain a rhythm.

Despite the small sample size, the Cubs made the tough decision to option Shaw back to Triple-A like they have done with numerous notable prospects over the years.

The strategy may have been different if Chicago was a rebuilding team full of young talent, but this squad has proven they are a real force to be reckoned with in 2025 and cannot afford to have a black hole in the lineup.

In the first week or two after his return to Triple-A, Shaw's numbers did not improve and he was beginning to struggle even more.

Things have started to improve now, though, with a huge weekend for the 23-year-old where he had four hits in nine at-bats, including both a double and home run in Sunday's narrow victory over Louisville.

Shaw's overall slash line in the first seven games of his Triple-A season does not jump off the page at .192/.344/.346, however, the batting average raised from below .100 during this past week.

With an OPS that is starting to skyrocket, as well, the young slugger appears to be finding his way once again.

The plan for Shaw following his early-season demotion was always to bring him back up at some point later in the year, but it was a question of when.

If the struggles from the first few games continued, it would have been difficult for him to crack the big league roster again in 2025.

But now that he is starting to hit, it's not out of the realm of possibility to expect him back before the dog days of summer arrive.

If Shaw can keep taking advantage of the opportunity to re-tool and get better, it will not be a surprise to see him return to the Cubs sometime over the next month or two.

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