Cubs rumors: How much left to spend on Bellinger? Pitcher whiff, Imanaga chase six years in the making, more
- An up and coming Cubs rookie appears to be considering a position change
- The Shota Imanaga signing is a tale of determined pursuit
- Cubs failed to land Brent Suter
- Cody Bellinger back to the Cubs feels possible, but how much do they have to spend?
By Josh Wilson
Cubs rookie looking at position switch
When it comes to young prospects in the MLB pipeline for any given team, how quickly each one gets their call-up to the majors depends on a few factors. Firstly is performance, of course, young players have to be putting up respectable numbers in the minor leagues to move up the ranks and eventually give the organization confidence that they can handle the big league pressure when that time comes.
Another factor is positional availability, too. A player locked into second base is unlikely to get the call-up if the team has an All-Star starter at the position already, barring an injury, trade, or some other circumstance to free the position up.
Chicago Cubs rookie and first-round pick Matt Shaw is trying to do his part to make sure positional capabilities are not the factor holding him back from a major league call-up, telling Ryan Herrera recently that, under the advice of Nico Hoerner, he's taking some reps at third base to give himself more of an expanded base of possibilities.
Cubs 1st round pick Matt Shaw said he's taken "probably 99%" of his reps at 3rd base this offseason. Mentioned Nico Hoerner saying how valuable it is to be able to play any position.
— Ryan Herrera (@ryan_a_herrera) January 13, 2024
"You never know where the oppotunities are gonna come. They could be anywhere."
Look no further than the Atlanta Braves to understand how important this is. Vaughn Grissom, a longtime beloved prospect in the Braves farm system, struggled mightily at shortstop when he was called up to the majors. He may have performed better at second base, but Ozzie Albies occupied that role and was not going to get displaced for a youngster.
Grissom was error-prone at short and untenable. Eventually, given that the Braves had better options, they had to trade him, ending all hope of him making it with the Braves.
Shaw looking to expand his game only creates more possibilities for him and his role in Chicago in the future. At present, he's 22 and ranked seventh in the Cubs pipeline.