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On Sunday, the Chicago Cubs lost their second out of three to the St. Louis Cardinals 3-2. Despite CF Pete-Crow Armstrong joining the late Ryne Sandberg with 30 or more steals, the Cubs have struggled offensively.
Since the All-Star break, Chicago has seen a sharp decline in batting average, runs scored, and extra-base hits. Star players such as Kyle Tucker has endured a slump purportedly due to a finger injury.
Nevertheless, third baseman Matt Shaw was the shining light for the Cubs, per Jordan Bastian of MLB.com.
Shaw went 1-for-4 and knocked in those two runs with a home run in the bottom of the 5th. He was ecstatic as he rounded the bases, hoping it would be the spark the team needed.
Unfortunately, it was to no avail.
“Usually, I’m pretty even-keeled,” Shaw said. “I definitely let out a little bit of emotion there. But it’s unfortunate how the game ended up, for sure.”
Afterward, Shaw gave credit to Cardinals pitcher Sonny Gray who threw him a 1-2 pitch that led to the Cubs tying the game at two.
“He’d been pitching really, really well up to that point,” he said. “And we hadn’t really gotten much going. So, it really felt like a huge part of the game.”
Additionally, Shaw attributed his mental and emotional growth to his success.
“[You] trust the preparation,” Shaw said. “But it’s really kind of just enjoy being up there and playing free. And not trying to get a hit necessarily, but kind of trusting that by being up there, being confident, not putting too much pressure, that good things happen.”
Matt Shaw's optimism for the Cubs
When it comes to resilience, Shaw knows a thing or two. In 2023, he was drafted by the Cubs out of the University of Maryland.
At first, he showed obvious signs of struggle. In his first 18 games, he batted .172 with a .535 OPS. Afterward, Shaw was sent to Triple-A Iowa and saw his numbers improve.
He hit 339/.379/.500 in his first 17 games in Iowa. In 2025, Shaw has had some stand out moments in his first full season.
On May 27, Shaw hit a walk-off home run against the Colorado Rockies to give the Cubs their 5th straight win.
On Sunday, Cubs manager Craig Counsell praised Shaw's growth.
“I think Matt’s always going to be a bit of a tinkerer mechanically,” he said. “But it’s all just this journey of getting better. And he’s comfortable trying new things and hearing new things to make him better.”
Shaw is batting .228 with 60 hits, 9 home runs, and 30 RBIs.
