Chicago Cubs Top Prospect Could Make Franchise History During His Rookie Season

With Spring Training kicking off for the Chicago Cubs, the franchise is excited to see what their strong offseason will be able to bring them in 2025.

The Cubs were one of the most improved teams in baseball this winter. Despite not spending much in free agency, they navigated the trade market beautifully.

With upgrades in their lineup and bullpen, Chicago appears to be a much better team on paper going into this season.

In the lineup, the unit is looking strong. The addition of Kyle Tucker gives them a true star in the middle of their order to build around for this coming campaign. With talent at nearly every position, there are few holes when looking at the batting order.

One of the question marks his third base after missing out on Alex Bregman.

The prevailing thought is their top prospect, Matt Shaw, is going to be the Opening Day starter at the hot corner and audition to man that position for the remainder of the season even with some veteran options on the roster.

Brian Murphy of MLB.com spoke about Cubs third baseman and how he could make a historic impact if he lives up to his billing.

"With plus power and speed, Shaw racked up 21 home runs and 31 stolen bases between Double-A and Triple-A last year. He was one of only four Minor Leaguers to record a 20-30 season. If Shaw meets his projection of 15 homers and 15 steals, he would be the first rookie in Cubs franchise history to log a 15-15 year."

That would be massive for Chicago.

There was disappointment after missing on Bregman since this year is seen as the time the Cubs are going all in after landing Tucker in a blockbuster deal and adding high-end bullpen arms to mix that glaring weakness.

But if Shaw can have that type of season in his rookie campaign, then not having the contract it would have taken to land Bregman on their books looks a whole lot better.

This is far from being a sure thing, though.

Many prospects making the transition to the Majors struggle in their first stint. However, Shaw has hit the ball well and appears like he can make the jump to be productive against this level of pitching.

The talented prospect has earned his chance to make his Major League debut this year, and he should be getting it on Opening Day where he will give himself a chance to make history.

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