Opening Day of the 2025 MLB regular season is about four weeks away for most teams. Nevertheless, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs will participate in the Tokyo Series that begins March 15 and will include a pair of regular-season games. The Cubs will likely go without one of their most promising prospects, as Matt Shaw is battling an oblique injury.
“There’s no way he’s going to be ready to go there and compete,” MLB analyst Bruce Levine said via 670 The Score. “You want him for the other 160 games.”
Shaw has been dealing with the oblique injury since the first week of February; the promising young Cubs slugger was forced to miss some early spring workouts due to the ailment and has yet to appear in a Cactus League game.
The 23-year-old Shaw is the Cubs' top prospect. The Cubs drafted the right-handed hitter with their first-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. Shaw has yet to make his big-league debut, although he did make it up to Triple-A last season. In 2024, across the Double-A and Triple-A levels, the infielder out of the University of Maryland slashed .284/.379/.488 with 21 homers.
Shaw has the potential to be a game-changer at the plate, as Baseball America describes him as, “a bat-first infielder with power and an above-average hit tool.”
The Cubs infamously missed out on signing Alex Bregman, and this helped further pave a path for Shaw to take over as the team's starting third baseman. It is worth noting that the Cubs signed Justin Turner. The 16-year veteran could man the hot corner if Shaw isn't ready for the start of the season. The rest of the Cubs infield features Michael Busch at first base, with Nico Hoerner at second base and Dansby Swanson at shortstop.
The Cubs and Dodgers will play two regular-season games in Tokyo before coming back to the United States. Once back, the Cubs will head to the desert for Opening Day and take on the Arizona Diamondbacks in a four-game series to start the year.
