The Chicago Cubs failing to sign Alex Bregman this offseason on the open market has turned out to be a much bigger issue than most originally thought. The franchise’s top draft choice in 2023, Matt Shaw, got the Opening Day nod at the hot corner and began the season in that position until he was sent down to Triple-A last week.
Shaw slashed .172/.294/.241 with a .535 OPS in his 18 games and 58 at-bats in what was a rough start to his big league. The former Maryland Terrapin will have time to make the necessary changes to his swing in Iowa and fans should not be concerned at all about his future as an everyday guy.
With Shaw off the roster, the coaching staff has been forced to piece together the third base position with three veterans. Between Gage Workman, Vidal Brujan and Jon Berti, things have not been pretty over the last week. Workman made two errors in Tuesday night’s game and Brujan has not looked the part defensively either. Berti is a 35-year-old veteran who hasn’t been a complete liability, but certainly shouldn’t be starting more than two games a week.
If the front office wants to give Shaw the time he needs to figure things out, it might not be a horrible idea to already begin looking into the trade market at third base. They could stay in the National League if they want to go after a bat that would provide more pop to their order.
Why the Chicago Cubs need to trade for Ryan McMahon
Ryan McMahon has been a consistent presence in the Colorado Rockies lineup since 2019 and has quietly been one of their better players over the last handful of years. The third baseman has hit 20 or more home runs in each of his last four seasons and he clubbed out 24 long balls in 2019. The lone season that stopped this skid for McMahon was in 2020 due to the 60-game campaign stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Along with his consistent power, McMahon has kept a clean bill of health in his time at the big league level. He has logged over 150 games in each of the last four campaigns posted a career high 3.9 WAR in 2021. A major plus that comes with McMahon is that he is not a total liability on the defensive side of things. He only made 12 errors in 130 games back in 2023, which is more than fine compared to what the Cubs have rolled out defensively to begin this season.
McMahon’s veteran presence and consistency at the plate would be a breath of fresh air for Chicago fans. As a left-handed bat, he wouldn’t block Shaw by any means and he would give the youngster a chance to fine tune his game longer in Iowa without feeling the pressure of needing to be back in the big leagues at a certain time.
Why Ryan McMahon wouldn’t be the best fit for the Chicago Cubs
Unfortunately for the Cubs, McMahon does have a few red flags as a trade target. He is under contract for two more seasons after 2025 and his $16 million per year salary would come along with his services in a trade. He isn’t having the strongest start to the current year either, as he is hitting under .200 in 22 games while having a .627 OPS.
McMahon’s WAR has gone down each season dating back to the 3.9 mark he posted in 2021 and it appears that his peak days could be behind him. Also, the Cubs already have a couple of power-hitting left-handed bats in their order with Kyle Tucker and Michael Busch having great starts to 2025. McMahon’s presence in the middle of the lineup could make things complicated for manager Craig Counsell in having to deal with another lefty to work into the fray.
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