Cubs News: The 13th overall pick was a great choice

The Chicago Cubs weren’t very good in 2022 but they weren’t bad enough to be a top-ten worst team either. That is why they had the 13th overall selection in the 2023 MLB Draft.

For a team that was as bad on paper as the 2022 Cubs, they found ways to win some games and weren’t a complete abomination. Having a top ten pick would have been nice but 13 is not bad at all.

The Cubs have been decent with their drafting over the years too, especially with position players. They are hoping that the trend continues here in 2023.

With the 13th overall selection, the Cubs chose Matt Shaw out of the University of Maryland. Shaw is someone that has the ability to play third, second, and short.

The Chicago Cubs are hoping for big things from Matt Shaw in the future.

There are questions about his arm at third base. The problem with that is that Dansby Swanson and Nico Hoerner are both projected to be at short and second for a long time.

Yes, it takes a long time for prospects to be ready for Major League Baseball but the goal is still to have him play with those guys one day.

Outside of his defense, however, Shaw is mostly known for being an outstanding hitter. This season at Maryland, he slashed .341/.445/.6977 and had 24 home runs with 69 RBIs. These are some insane numbers for college baseball.

He also has some other offensive abilities that will serve him well in his development. He can steal bases as he had 18 of them this year. He also has a tremendous eye at the plate as he had more walks (43) than strikeouts (42).

As long as the Cubs stay the course on their rebuild, good days are ahead. They have a pretty good farm that just got a great bat added to it in the first round. It will be a while before we know how truly good he is but it will be fun to watch.