Cubs’ Matt Shaw is still in the picture after trade deadline and nearing return

CHICAGO — Matt Shaw, a young talent the Chicago Cubs did not move at the trade deadline while he recovered from a sprained left wrist, expects to begin a minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Iowa in the coming days.

Shaw, 24, has not played in a major-league game since June 28, though his prospect pedigree and last year’s solid rookie season still could have made him a valuable trade chip at the Aug. 3 deadline.

Shaw reported no issues after hitting off the Trajekt pitching machine on Friday at Wrigley Field. The Cubs plan to have Shaw repeat those hitting sessions on Saturday and Sunday, then reassess the situation.

“Hopefully, if that all goes super smoothly,” Shaw said, “then Tuesday I’ll be rehabbing in Iowa.”

Shaw’s future in the organization became uncertain when the Cubs landed free agent Alex Bregman in January, signing the All-Star third baseman to a five-year, $175 million contract.

Another future opportunity for Shaw was blocked once Gold Glove second baseman Nico Hoerner signed a six-year, $141 million contract extension around Opening Day.

The recent emergence of young infielder Pedro Ramírez, first as a top prospect and then as a solid contributor for the major-league club, also could have made Shaw expendable.

However, Jed Hoyer’s front office found other ways to reinforce the pitching staff substantially. And Shaw, who’s scheduled to remain under club control through the 2031 season, including two more years at a pre-arbitration salary scale, could be a valuable role player down the stretch and an Opening Day corner outfielder next year.

“There’s still a lot of baseball left,” Shaw said.

With Shaw sidelined, the Cubs acquired Tyrone Taylor, a right-handed-hitting outfielder, as part of the Clay Holmes deal with the New York Mets. These return-to-play timelines are fluid with all of Chicago’s injured players.

Still, one date to circle is Aug. 31, when the Cubs are scheduled to begin a stretch of seven games in 10 days against the Milwaukee Brewers, the team they are chasing in the National League Central race.

“We’ll see,” Shaw said. “If I go and perform really well early on, then I’ll be able to show them that I’m ready. If it takes me a while to get the timing back, then that could be the case, too. But I’d love to be back for these Brewers series coming up.”

Shaw was a first-round pick in the 2023 draft from the University of Maryland. The Cubs handed Shaw the job after Bregman, a coveted free agent, turned down their offer during spring training ahead of the 2025 campaign.

Learning a new position on the fly, Shaw’s athleticism and work ethic turned him into a Gold Glove finalist at third base. After initially struggling to adjust to major-league pitching, he needed a reset at Iowa and eventually worked his way back to Chicago.

After last year’s All-Star break, Shaw hit 11 home runs across 63 games, posting an .839 OPS. He also performed well in a utility role earlier this season, producing a .737 OPS while shifting between the infield and the outfield. Still, his injury lingered longer than club officials initially anticipated.

“For a week or two, I just stopped trying to push it and I just kind of did the max I could do without any pain,” Shaw said. “And then after those two weeks, it started feeling a lot better. Before, it was like trying to stay under a 4 (level) of pain, so I was constantly pushing on it, and it just didn’t really feel better.

“Giving it that week-and-a-half of, ‘OK, I’m just going to stay pain-free, whatever that is, and work through that range,’ it started to feel a lot better.”