1 Cubs player whose future got a lot murkier with the Nico Hoerner contract extension

Almost immediately after a disappointing Opening Day performance drew to a close, the narrative flipped. The Chicago Cubs changed the narrative in a big way, extending second baseman Nico Hoerner to a six-year contract. It's the second such deal handed out by the team this week, following the six-year extension signed by Pete Crow-Armstrong.

With both superstars locked in for the foreseeable future, the team is finally forming a long-term core to build around. However, that stability comes at a price, particularly for Matt Shaw.

Matt Shaw's future with Cubs now probably lies in the outfield

When the team inked Alex Bregman to a five-year deal over the offseason, the expectation was that Shaw would slip into a super-utility role before taking over at the keystone once Hoerner departed in free agency next winter.

Alas, that plan is up in smoke. Like Bregman and Dansby Swanson, Hoerner is now under contract beyond 2028; the same is also true for Michael Busch, whose final arbitration year will come in 2029. With so much stability in the infield, the Cubs won't have much use for Shaw on the dirt unless they plan for him to be a full-time backup.

Even after an up-andd-down rookie season, that's a step too far for someone who was one of the better offensive prospects in the game just one year ago. Instead, the plan for Shaw's future may already be in action, thanks to an injury sustained by Seiya Suzuki.

Shaw will be the team's starting right fielder while Suzuki tends to his knee injury, with Dylan Carlson and Michael Conforto on hand to help out if the experiment derails. He wasn't tested too frequently on Opening Day, but he looked athletic while fighting the wind on a couple of plays near the warning track.

The future of the outfield is now the biggest question facing the roster, seeing as Owen Caissie was traded a few months ago and both Suzuki and Ian Happ are due for free agency at the conclusion on the season. Seeing if Shaw (and/or Kevin Alcantara) can settle into a corner outfield role is a huge developmental task for the team this season, though perhaps not as important as if his bat finds some consistency.

As a reminder, Shaw hit just .226/.295/.394 (93 wRC+) through 126 games in the majors in his rookie campaign. There were prolonged slumps and even a stint in Triple-A to help him get his mind right, and though he did turn things around in August (.839 OPS and 127 wRC+), he then followed that up with a .688 OPS in September and a 30.4 percent strikeout rate in the postseason.

Once Suzuki returns, Shaw will likely return to a utility role on the bench. But Craig Counsell will still have every incentive to trot him out to left and right field on a consistent basis, seeing as second base is no longer a viable long-term path to playing time in Chicago.