Man, I sure do hate oblique injuries. One day you panic, the next day things seem fine and then all of a sudden it's been two weeks and Matt Shaw is barely getting back into the hitting cages at spring training. According to 670 The Score's baseball reporter Bruce Levine, you can forget about Shaw playing in Japan in about three weeks.
Shaw has not appeared in any of the team's first six game in the Cactus League in Arizona and isn't playing on Wednesday either. While Cubs manager Craig Counsell said the team isn't ruling anything out for Shaw, Levine is saying the Cubs are waiting to make the decision official before heading out to their trip to Japan.
The Cubs haven’t announced it yet, but Matt Shaw (oblique) almost certainly won’t make the trip to Japan, @MLBBruceLevine says.
— 670 The Score (@670TheScore) February 26, 2025
"There’s no way he’s going to be ready to go there and compete," Levine says.
"You want him for the other 160 games."
Listen: https://t.co/ykdrWqMmd0 pic.twitter.com/qophh0AtbC
Here's what Counsell said about Shaw's progress on Tuesday.
“He took ground balls in the stadium yesterday and threw,” manager Craig Counsell said on Tuesday. “So he kind of goes every other day on that perspective.”
Shaw was scheduled to hit in the cages on Tuesday, but don’t have an exact timeline of when he could get into game action.
“No, it’s not too far,” Counsell said. “We’re not ruling him out for anything, I guess is the best way to say it.”
The Cubs begin regular season play with a pair of games against the Los Angeles Dodgers on March 18 and 19, in Japan. In regards to Shaw, if he's not getting any game action within the next week, then it's doubtful that he'll be ready for the two-game set. And well, maybe at this point the focus is on March 27, Opening Day across MLB, which includes the start of a four-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
If Shaw is indeed out for the Dodgers' games, then Gage Workman all of a sudden has a great chance to make the team. It's already been trending that way, but if Shaw is out, then the Cubs need additional depth at third base behind veteran Jon Berti.
Workman has been impressive on defense at third through a week of spring training games, while also generating positive results at the plate. The Cubs acquired Workman in the offseason from the Detroit Tigers in the Rule 5 Draft. The 25-year-old played in Double-A last season.
By the way, it's also likely that Nico Hoerner won't be making that trip to Japan either. He's been rehabbing from his right flexor tendon surgery and also hasn't come close to appearing in a spring training game. So, Hoerner's status also opens the door for fringe guys like Vidal Bruján, Nicky Lopez and prospect James Triantos to make the original 26-man roster as well.
