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With the postseason picture still very much in flux in both the American and National League, for Chicago Cubs fans, this represents the last week of the season, with Craig Counsell's club set to miss the playoffs for a fourth consecutive year.
The attention, for many, has already turned to a critical offseason - one that may very well determine whether or not Jed Hoyer has a job past 2025. While free agency and trade rumors are the sexier aspects of the winter, evaluating internal talent and up-and-coming prospects will be a key task facing the front office - and top prospect Matt Shaw is at the top of that list.
Shaw closed out the Triple-A season with an amazing catch - and this web gem coincides with him being named the Chicago Cubs' prospect of the year by Baseball America, so it was quite a weekend for the team's 2023 first-round pick.
MATT SHAW WITH THE PLAY OF THE YEAR!!!!!! We're going to extras! pic.twitter.com/y2Au0o5iJr
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) September 22, 2024
The former Maryland standout finishes the year with a .284/.379/.488 across Double and Triple-A, including an eye-popping .929 OPS at Iowa. He'll no doubt factor into the big-league club's 2025 plans despite a lack of a clear path to regular playing time.
This weekend could be Kyle Hendricks' swan song with the Cubs
Kyle Hendricks was solid in his start Friday against the Washington Nationals, despite allowing four earned on nine hits in 5 1/3 innings of work. The Wrigley Field crowd gave him a nice applause as he departed, well aware that his time with the Cubs is likely drawing to a close after 11 years on the North Side.
This weekend's season-ending series against Cincinnati may offer our last glimpse of 'The Professor' as he prepares to test free agency after the worst season of his career. From winning an ERA title to pitching the pennant-clincher and starting Game 7, Hendricks is one of the best starting pitchers in Cubs history and it will be bittersweet to see this chapter come to a close. If he does, indeed, get the ball this weekend, expect a standing ovation for the last man standing from 2016.