4 Cubs spring training heroes who won’t make Opening Day roster

3) Matt Shaw was selected in the first round by the Cubs for a reason

Few prospects around the league outside of the super high-end guys like Jackson Holliday, Wyatt Langford, and Paul Skenes have generated more buzz than Matt Shaw, who has begun his professional career with a bang.

The Cubs selected Shaw with the 13th pick of last year's draft and he wound up making the jump from Rookie Ball to AA by the time the season ended. That's not exactly normal, and is a testament to how dominant he was in his short time in professional baseball. Shaw slashed .357/.400/.618 overall with eight home runs and 28 RBI in 38 minor league games overall. He even stole 15 bases and saw time at three different positions.

Shaw was never going to make the Cubs Opening Day roster with how inexperienced he is in professional baseball, but the fact that he already made it to AA suggested that he could be close. His performance this spring has only made him closer to making it to the majors.

Shaw has seven hits in 28 at-bats thus far which might not seem great, but five of his seven hits have been for extra bases. With the Cubs lacking a clear-cut answer at third base, Shaw might be up sooner than later if players like Nick Madrigal and Patrick Wisdom get off to slow starts.