zebby-matthews.jpg

Matt Shaw is a minor-leaguer again, and it can probably go without saying that he's one of the top ones to stash.

Sure, his first attempt to lock down the Cubs' third base job didn't go as planned, but there were some positives. He showed a good batting eye, walking at a 15 percent rate, and didn't get completely buried by strikeouts the way so many first-time major-leaguers do.

Then again, it sounds like his unwillingness to strike out may have contributed to his struggles. President of baseball operations Jed Hoyer noted that Shaw appeared to be in "survival mode" for much of his stay, selling out for contact rather than swinging at max effort, which might explain his bottom-of-the-barrel exit velocity readings. He averaged just 82.7 mph on batted balls compared to 89.3 mph at Triple-A last year.

Timing may have been his biggest issue, though. For those who've never seen Shaw play, his swing is defined by an exaggerated leg kick that's rather awkward to look at. You can see it here on the one home run he hit way back on March 29:

As critical as that leg kick is to his power production, syncing it up with the rest of his swing is imperative, and according to MLB.com, Shaw "worked over the offseason on starting his swing earlier, anticipating higher velocity in the majors." That was apparently his first mistake.

"Honestly, as I've gone through this," Shaw said, "I've realized that I didn't need to adjust like I did, and I think I was better off just sticking with what makes me good."

player headshot
Matt Shaw 3B
CHC Chi. Cubs • #6 • Age: 23
2025 Stats
AVG
.172
HR
1
SB
0
AB
58
BB
10
K
18

The Cubs believe his first stint in the majors will clarify what he needs to work on, and I suspect that once he gets his timing down at Triple-A, he'll be back in short order. It's not like the Cubs have a viable Plan B at third base, after all, where players like Gage Workman, Jon Berti, Vidal Brujan and Justin Turner now figure to split time.

So the bottom line is that if you play in a league where any prospects are worth stashing, Shaw should be among them. I'll refrain from including him in my Five on the Verge this week just because there are some other names I want to focus on and, well, we can be sure he won't be coming back within a week's time. But in all fairness, he should probably place second here, behind only (drumroll please) ... Nick Kurtz.

FIVE ON THE VERGE

(Here are the prospects most worth stashing in redraft leagues.)

Nick Kurtz, 1B, Athletics

2024 minors: .368 BA (38 AB), 4 HR, 3 2B, 1.283 OPS, 12 BB, 10 K
2025 minors: .348 BA (69 AB), 7 HR, 6 2B, 1.134 OPS, 6 BB, 18 K

It's happening! Brent Rooker has vacated the DH spot for two of the Athletics' past four games, playing the outfield instead, and if the Athletics decide to make it a more permanent arrangement, well, that would free up the DH spot for a second first baseman -- i.e., Kurtz. This isn't just me theorizing. Here's what manager Mark Kotsay had to say about working Kurtz into the lineup:

"The beauty of the process will be that we're adding a bat that can have an impact in the lineup," Kotsay said. "How we do that is continually being discussed. But there's opportunity for a rotation to happen between an outfield position, a DH position, a first base position. Possibly look at third base as using something that we can do. There's a ton of options."

Wait, did he just say third base? Yes, according to MLB.com beat writer Martin Gallegos, the Athletics are open to having Tyler Soderstrom play there on occasion as a way to get Kurtz in the lineup. So they're willing to get creative, obviously, and with Rooker getting more exposure to the outfield of late, that creativity is already underway. Seems like word of a Kurtz promotion could come down any day now.

"He's hitting the ball extremely hard. The exit velos are really high. The competition aspect as well. You look at the velos that he's facing and some of the prospects he's going up against," Kotsay said. "He's done as much, or more, than what's needed."

Given how effortlessly Kurtz has moved through the Athletics' system, demonstrating massive power while maintaining control of the strike zone, the Fantasy impact could be considerable when that day comes.

Zebby Matthews, SP, Twins

2024 minors: 6-3, 2.60 ERA, 0.87 WHIP, 97 IP, 7 BB, 114 K
2024 majors: 1-4, 6.69 ERA, 1.65 WHIP, 37 2/3 IP, 11 BB, 43 K
2025 minors: 2-1, 1.80 ERA, 0.73 WHIP, 15 IP, 2 BB, 20 K

You'll notice Matthews isn't in the majors yet, despite my insistence a week ago that he would be. Yeah ... turns out the Twins instead opted for David Festa as their replacement for Pablo Lopez, and his first two turns have gone well enough that they're likely to stick with him. But Matthews continues to dominate Triple-A with an additional 2 mph from a year ago, and you can see that it's had no effect on his strike-throwing, which remains at the top of the scales. He's inarguably next in line now, with Festa out of the way, and the Twins still have a couple stiffs in their rotation in Simeon Woods Richardson and Chris Paddack. If you've already moved to add Matthews, you should hold. His day is coming.

Bubba Chandler, SP, Pirates

2024 minors: 10-7, 3.08 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 119 2/3 IP, 41 BB, 148 K
2025 minors: 0-0, 1.69 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, 10 2/3 IP, 5 BB, 18 K

A week ago, I laid out a potential timeline for Chandler, noting that if he follows the same buildup plan as Paul Skenes a year ago, we could see him on or around May 1. What I didn't mention, though, is that Chandler is so far looking even more dominant than a year ago, which itself was good enough to make him a consensus top-five pitching prospect. He's averaging 98.2 mph on his fastball, up nearly 1.5 mph from his time at Triple-A last year, and topped at 101.5 mph in his latest outing Sunday. According to Baseball America, that puts him in some exclusive company:

Sunday's start was also Chandler's first of three without a walk, another encouraging sign given that shaky control would be the most logical reason for a delay, given his past issues with it. So far, I have no reason to back down from my projected timeline, and you'd rather not have to fend off everyone else for Chandler when that day comes. 

Roman Anthony, OF, Red Sox

2024 minors: .291 BA (454 AB), 18 HR, 21 SB, .894 OPS, 79 BB, 127 K
2025 minors: .283 BA (46 AB), 2 HR, 1 SB, .941 OPS, 13 BB, 15 K

Remember how Anthony was batting .167 just a week ago? Yeah ... it'll be a few weeks before a week is anything less than an eternity stats-wise. Three straight multi-hit games were enough to make Anthony's stats look right again, and along the way, he even set a new high for hardest-hit ball at 113.1 mph, beating out last year's mark of 112.5 mph. Meanwhile, his average exit velocity is 99.0 mph, an absurd mark, and he's walking at about the same rate he strikes out. If his .344/..463/.519 slash line in 35 games at Triple-A last year wasn't enough to convince you he's ready, his start to this year certainly should. Mostly, it's just a matter of the Red Sox finding an opening for him, and while Wilyer Abreu's hot start complicates things, Ceddanne Rafaela's and Kristian Campbell's versatility make it so that the opening could come almost anywhere on the diamond.

Jordan Lawlar, SS, Diamondbacks

2024 minors: .318 BA (85 AB), 2 HR, 6 SB, .899 OPS, 14 BB, 23 K
2025 minors: .288 BA (66 AB), 3 HR, 4 SB, .905 OPS, 9 BB, 22 K

The Diamondbacks lost star second baseman Ketel Marte to a hamstring injury a couple weeks ago, and while they've tried to make do with Garrett Hampson and Tim Tawa in his absence, neither has much to offer offensively. What you may not know is that top shortstop prospect Jordan Lawlar has been spending most of his time at second base lately, making six of his last seven starts there, and here's what GM Mike Hazen had to say about it Wednesday on Wolf & Luke, a local radio program.

"He hadn't played a lot of second base, and we knew that was going to be the gap early in the season. That's the area that we need to ramp up."

Ramp up for what, you ask? Well, Hazen added that Lawlar is "a really good player" who's "going to be on our team at some point." With three homers and three doubles in his past six games, Lawlar may be close to convincing the Diamondbacks he's the better choice at second base. And, of course, he is, being an elite prospect who's overdue for his opportunity to shine after missing most of last season with thumb and hamstring injuries.

FIVE ON THE PERIPHERY

(Here are some other prospects doing something of note.)

Alex Freeland, SS, Dodgers

2024 minors: .260 BA (507 AB), 18 HR, 31 SB, .829 OPS, 91 BB, 133 K
2025 minors: .329 BA (73 AB), 1 HR, 5 SB, .879 OPS, 9 BB, 23 K

The Dodgers may be losing faith in Andy Pages as their center fielder, having shifted Tommy Edman over from second base to start there a couple times recently. If they decide Edman is a better fit in the outfield, that would clear the way for an infield call-up, and while Hyeseong Kim would be the most logical choice, we can't completely rule out Freeland, who's off to an even more promising start at Triple-A Oklahoma City. The 23-year-old has already topped last year's max exit velocity (at least at Triple-A) by 3 mph, and he's averaging a ridiculous 97.2 mph on batted balls. His patient approach is one the Dodgers are known to covet, and his switch-hitting would eliminate any platoon concerns. It's pretty unlikely he would leapfrog Kim, particularly since he's not on the 40-man roster yet, but he's at least putting himself in the conversation.

Robby Snelling, SP, Marlins

2024 minors: 4-10, 5.15 ERA, 1.52 WHIP, 115 2/3 IP, 45 BB, 115 K
2025 minors: 2-0, 2.20 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 16 2/3 IP, 2 BB, 20 K

Snelling went into last year as one of the top left-handed pitching prospects in baseball and then crashed so hard that the Padres were content to give up him, along with three others, for two months of Tanner Scott. His stuff returned almost immediately upon joining the Marlins organization -- where he put together a 3.67 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 10.3 K/9 across two levels of play -- and has ticked up further this year, with his fastball averaging about where it peaked last year (95 mph). He's also throwing strikes at an elite 70 percent clip, so while his stock took a pretty big hit with last year's misstep, a correction in the other direction may be needed now.

C.J. Kayfus, 1B, Guardians

2024 minors: .291 BA (405 AB), 17 HR, .904 OPS, 59 BB, 117 K
2025 minors: .474 BA (38 AB), 1 HR, 1.337 OPS, 8 BB, 10 K

Kayfus first emerged as a possible Dynasty asset in his 41 games at High-A Lake County last year, slashing .338/.437/.578, but a move up to Double-A Akron brought those numbers down to size and made him a relative afterthought again. Well, now he's off to a similar start, only this time at Akron, showing the requisite adaptability to make it all the way to the majors, perhaps. His bat is stretched at first base, where his modest exit velocities may prevent him from accessing the necessary power, but the hit tool and plate discipline are both strong enough to give him a fighting chance.

Noah Cameron, SP, Royals

2024 minors: 7-6, 3.08 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 128 2/3 IP, 36 BB, 149 K
2025 minors: 2-0, 1.65 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 16 1/3 IP, 6 BB, 18 K

Cameron made a strong impression after reaching Triple-A Omaha last season, putting together a 2.41 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 10.4 K/9 across 10 starts -- and that was while averaging just 92.1 mph on his fastball. So far this year, he's averaging 93.1 on that fastball. The pitch plays up because it carries through the zone so well, causing hitters to swing underneath it, and his changeup and curveball earn even higher grades from evaluators. The left-hander is putting himself in position for a midseason call-up and has the pitchability to stick, potentially.

Otto Kemp, 2B, Phillies

2024 minors: .285 BA (442 AB), 16 HR, 20 SB, .881 OPS, 52 BB, 112 K
2025 minors: .313 BA (64 AB), 5 HR, 2 SB, 1.072 OPS, 9 BB, 17 K

After an injury-plagued college career, Kemp went undrafted in 2022 and didn't do much in the year that followed. But he surged through the Phillies' entire minor-league system last year and ended up starring in the Arizona Fall League, where he slashed .289/.460/.733 with six home runs in 15 games. Now that he's at Triple-A and we can see the Statcast data, it's pretty impressive. His average exit velocity is 93.2 mph, and his max is 110.9. He impacts the ball like a legitimate power hitter, in other words, and is also a pretty good judge of balls and strikes. It's unlikely the Phillies will clear a path for the 25-year-old, but seeing as he's already appeared at first, second and third base this year, he has more than one "in."