MESA, Ariz. — Matt Shaw packed for a 10-day round trip to Japan on Monday without completely knowing whether the Chicago Cubs would give him a seat on the plane for Tuesday’s flight.
Shaw noticed some hints and optimistic signs during spring training, particularly the way teammates and coaches started to interact with him in Arizona. Club officials also publicly labeled him as the favorite to become their Opening Day third baseman. Cubs manager Craig Counsell had given him a heads-up that this could happen, not wanting to keep the organization’s top prospect totally in the dark.
But the definitive answer didn’t come until Shaw walked into the manager’s office on Tuesday morning and found out that he would indeed be one of the 31 players on the Tokyo Series travel roster.
“It’s stressful,” Shaw said, “but that’s the nature of the business.”
Craig Counsell announces that Matt Shaw will be traveling to Japan. pic.twitter.com/ev7rkPpydU
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) March 11, 2025
Shaw, 23, didn’t look too stressed or overly excited, but that’s how the University of Maryland product turned himself into a first-round and rocketed through the farm system. If not for an oblique issue that limited him in early workouts at the Sloan Park training complex and delayed his Cactus League start, there probably wouldn’t have been much debate over whether he should be there against the Los Angeles Dodgers at the Tokyo Dome.
“I was never super-worried about the amount of time,” Shaw said. “I’ve been here for a long time. I was here New Year’s Eve. I’ve been preparing for this opportunity for my entire life. It just kind of came down to: ‘Will they let me play?’ And if they will, I feel ready.”
With Shaw ticketed for Japan, this is the Cubs’ traveling group for the Tokyo Series:
Position players (14)
Catchers: Miguel Amaya, Carson Kelly and Reese McGuire.
Infielders: Michael Busch, Jon Berti, Dansby Swanson, Matt Shaw, Gage Workman, Justin Turner and Vidal Bruján.
Outfielders: Kyle Tucker, Pete Crow-Armstrong, Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki.
The roster rules allow Nico Hoerner to stay off the injured list and remain on track for domestic Opening Day (March 27). The Gold Glove second baseman, who’s recovering from offseason flexor tendon surgery, is scheduled to hang back in Arizona and play in minor-league games, pushing his rehab process forward.
In effect, Shaw made the Opening Day roster because 13 position players will be active for the Tokyo Series. McGuire, a non-roster player, is only going on the trip as a third catcher, making him available for exhibition games or in the event Amaya or Kelly get injured.
Assuming Shaw stays healthy, he will be added to the 40-man roster by next week. The Cubs would not bring Shaw to Japan with the intention of leaving him as one of their three designated inactive players.
“I haven’t seen the lineup for Game 1 against the Dodgers,” Shaw said. “But actually being out there, making my debut hopefully, playing against the reigning World Series champs, how amazing would that be?”
Pitchers (17)
Game 1 starter: Shota Imanaga
Game 2 starter: Justin Steele
Staff: Jameson Taillon, Matthew Boyd, Ben Brown, Colin Rea, Jordan Wicks, Brad Keller, Daniel Palencia, Eli Morgan, Tyson Miller, Caleb Thielbar, Julian Merryweather, Ryan Brasier, Nate Pearson, Porter Hodge and Ryan Pressly
Before their season-opening series against the Dodgers, the Cubs will need to cut down to 13 pitchers. Counsell stressed that “we’re not going to decide on an active roster until we have to” because you never know what might happen.
The Cubs are planning a bullpen game for their March 14 exhibition against the Hanshin Tigers. Meanwhile, Taillon is in line to face the Yomiuri Giants in the March 16 exhibition. For now, the Cubs are holding off on whether to use Boyd in the Nippon Professional Baseball events or save the lefty starter for the Dodgers.
Either way, the Tokyo Dome should be rocking with Imanaga and Steele matching up against Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki, respectively.
“It’s going to be electric the entire time,” Steele said. “Just watching videos of how their fans really get into the games, there’s going to be a ton of energy in the building.”
The under-the-radar name on the travel list is Keller, who should be added to the 40-man roster at some point. Depending on how this trip unfolds, there could be a little bit of wiggle room between the Tokyo Series and the continuation of the regular season in late March. The main takeaway is the Cubs targeted Keller for a minor-league deal this offseason, and he convinced the club’s decision-makers that he can be an impact pitcher at Wrigley Field.
Keller, 29, had once been an effective starting pitcher for the Kansas City Royals, but the Cubs plan to use him out of their bullpen, perhaps for multiple innings, and then determine if he can handle high-leverage situations.
One notable omission from the travel roster is Keegan Thompson, who does not have a minor-league option this year and appears to be running out of time in the organization.
Jed Hoyer’s front office and Counsell’s coaching staff know the roster will change when the Cubs return to Arizona and finish the second phase of spring training. It will also continue to evolve over a long season that they hope will stretch into October.
“You’re going to have to make some hard decisions,” Hoyer said. “The goal, always, is to keep as much depth and talent as possible. But there’s limits to that. And sometimes you reach those limits.”
(Top photo: Rick Scuteri / Imagn Images)
