Matt Shaw, other youngsters should give Cubs a boost

The Chicago Cubs’ offseason to this point has been more about who they have acquired.

They made a significant trade last week with the Houston Astros for right fielder Kyle Tucker. The Cubs have signed left-hander Matthew Boyd and catcher Carson Kelly as free agents.

Those moves were obviously designed to help the Cubs get better after posting 83-79 records each of the last two seasons. President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer enters the final year of his contract and there is heat being applied by the fans – if not ownership – for him to get the Cubs back to the postseason for the first since the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

However, the Cubs have five highly regarded prospects close to being major-league ready who could help push the franchise to its first NL Central title in a full season since 2017.

The player closest is third baseman Matt Shaw, ranked as the 43rd best prospect in the game by Baseball America. The Cubs cleared a spot in the lineup for Shaw by including third baseman Isaac Parades in the trade for Tucker.

The 23-year-old Shaw was the Cubs’ first-round draft pick in 2023 from the University of Maryland. He hit .284/.379/.488 combined with 21 home runs and 31 stolen bases in 121 games with Double-A Tennessee and Triple-A Iowa this year.

Four other top 100 prospects finished last season at Iowa and are line to make their MLB debuts some time in 2025—right-hander Cade Horton (No. 42), outfielders Owen Caissie (No. 52) and Kevin Alcantara (No. 76) and catcher Moises Ballesteros (No. 64).

“I would say, just generally speaking, of all those guys that finished the year in Triple-A, put a blanket over them,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “Those guys will all impact a big-league team this year in some way or another. I think they could be depth. Some of them could be a regular by the end of the year. I think they’re all good enough and young enough that they’re still in a big developmental stage. There could be huge growth for some of them during the season or when they show up at spring training. Those are the guys that they force their way onto a team or force their way into a platoon situation, whatever it may be, and I fully anticipate that to happen. Hopefully more than just one of them.”

Tucker will provide a big boost to an offense that was middle of the pack last season, finishing 14th in runs scored among the 30 MLB teams. The Cubs hope Shaw will offset the loss of first baseman/outfielder Cody Bellinger, who was traded to the New York Yankees on Tuesday. The Cubs feel they can ably fill Bellinger’s void with Michael Busch at first base and Pete Crow-Armstrong in center field.

Kelly should supplement Miguel Amaya behind the plate and a healthy Dansby Swanson should also help bolster the offense. The shortstop had hernia surgery after hitting .242/.312/.390 with 16 homers and 19 stolen bases in 149 games.

“I think it was an injury that nagged at him throughout the year,” Counsell. “Look, he played, right? So, it was an injury that he was able to play with, but it was also an injury that just makes it hard, right?

“I don’t have an answer as to how much it affected him, but it was an injury that required surgery, so it’s clear that there was something there. I think he’ll be in a better place next year without having to deal with it.”

Pitching was the Cubs’ strength last season. They were sixth in the big leagues in starters’ ERA and their relievers posted the 12th-best ERA.

The Cubs are banking for a healthy season from Boyd, who signed a two-year, $29-million contract. The 33-year-old pitched for the Cleveland Guardians this season after recovering from elbow surgery, going 2-2 with a 2.72 ERA in eight starts during the regular season then allowed only one run in 11 1/3 innings over three playoff starts.

Boyd should slot into the rotation behind lefties Shota Imanaga and Justin Steele and righty Jameson Taillon.

“I think we have good (pitching) depth,” Counsell said. “I think making that a strong point of the team, depth of our staff, is important. I think Matthew’s in a good place kind of post some injuries where we feel like this could be a really good season for him or a couple seasons for him. It's just a place where you can't get caught without depth, quality. You have to have it, and we thought that was a good place to go.”