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The third goal of the Chicago Cubs, Matt Shaw, is “not at all” at all “by any reaction that he could obtain after jumping a match to attend the Charlie Kirk memorial in Arizona.
Shaw missed the defeat of CUBS 1-0 against the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday to attend the commemorative service in Glendale, although the manager Craig Counsell told the media that Shaw was not available for the game because he was in funeral for a friend.
Shaw explained why he had made a duty to attend the memorial despite the calendar of his team.
“My connection with Charlie was through our [Christian] Faith, “Shaw said before the Cubs opened up a new series with New York dishes on Tuesday, according to Chicago Sun-Time.” And this is something that leads me every day, the reason why I am able to do what I do every day, and this is something that I am extremely grateful. I know that without my faith and without the many blessings that have been given to me in my life, that I would not be here, that I could speak to you, capable of helping this team possibly winning championships.
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The third basic player in Chicago Cubs, Matt Shaw (6) High Fives teammates, after hitting a two -round circuit in the fourth round against the Cincinnati Reds at the Great American Ball Park on September 19, 2025. (Katie Stratman / Imagn images)
“This is something that I really feel, really blessed, so whatever the backlash is ok. I feel strong about my faith and that what was supposed to be, happened.”
Matt Shaw de Cubs leaves the team to attend the commemorative service Charlie Kirk: reports
Shaw added that he and Kirk became friends of the last season while they lived in the same apartments in Arizona. The two stayed in contact throughout the MLB season, said Shaw.
Shaw said he was very emotional when he discovered that Kirk had been murdered during a speaking event at Utah Valley University on September 10.
“When that happened, a lot of emotions came to me,” he said. “I did not plan that it was happening. I do not know how to describe everything that happened, how I felt, but I would say that I was tearing up quite well. I had a lot of [teammates] Support me, and it will be something that I will remember all my life. “”
Shaw had been scratched from the Cubs program that evening before a match against the Braves of Atlanta.
Kirk, from Arlington Heights, a northern suburb of Chicago, was “one of the biggest fans of the Cubs that I have ever met,” said Shaw. In fact, Shaw said it was Erika Kirk, his widow, who asked her to attend the memorial. After a conversation with Counsell and some teammates, Shaw estimated that his decision to attend was accepted.
“The reason Charlie and I connected so close was because of our faith,” added Shaw. “This is something that motivates me every day, something I think all the time. So, if people wonder who I am and what I represent, I would say that my faith and the many blessings that have been given to me are why I can be here, and I just want to love people in the same way as I was blessed.”
The Cubs were one of the MLB teams to pay tribute to Kirk, calling for the end of “all political violence”.
Matt Shaw of the Chicago Cubs in action against the Rays of Tampa Bay in Wrigley Field on September 12, 2025 in Chicago. (Michael Reaves / Getty Images)
The Wrigley Field flag was controlled at half of the staff in accordance with the MLB’s request that the teams follow the presidential proclamation of President Donald Trump in honor of Kirk.
