Every player is different, but, generally speaking, pitching coaches and managers as a whole would prefer their pitchers not to show their emotions. Good, bad, or indifferent, pitchers, at least many or most of them, try to keep an even keel and not give opposing hitters a glimpse into what they’re thinking.

That’s Evan Shaw, a long tall & talented pitcher who was drafted last summer, to a tee.

Shaw learned at an early age, from those around him with big experience in the game, how to handle the ups and downs of the game of baseball, and he’s ticketed all of that great advice into the wild ride that professional baseball is.

Always Been Great

There’s an old saying that “Bad Dawgs bite when they’re pups” and there could be no truer words to describe Shaw. As a Freshman, he set his High school record for wins in a single season, beating out, yes, his Uncle, who had set that record several years earlier. Truth truly is crazier than fiction, because you can’t make that kind of stuff up.

Nor do you have to make up the fact that Shaw also threw 2 no-hitters while in High School, and would have had a perfect game in the 2nd one, but he hit the very FIRST hitter of the game. Then threw a perfect game from there.

That was super exciting because I had no idea until the end of the season that my Uncle held that record, and I had no idea that I had broken it. My Uncle was super stoked and super proud.

His Uncle Dennis was obviously a great player in his own right, but Shaw also had a grandpa who played professionally and had a huge influence on his career as well.

My Grandpa Jack has had a big impact on my career. He’s such a smart guy in life and in baseball and I can talk to him about anything, and it’s been a blessing to have him at my games.

Shaw had a fairly legendary prep career at Fridley High in Minnesota where he went 32-8, had an ERA of just 1.39, 347 Ks, 2 no-hitters, and set the school’s all-time wins for a season.

The Winding Road

After that legendary career, he took his left-handed talents to Minnesota State where he spent the Covid year, and, as a result, pitched only 5.1 innings. He then transferred to Cochise College where he spent the next 2 seasons.

After putting together a first-team All-ACCAC season in 2023 where he recorded 184 Ks in 129 IP, he then transferred to KU for last season, 2024.

He spent last year, his Junior year, at the top of the rotation for the Jayhawks before getting drafted in the 16th Round last Summer (2024). Shaw did have a year of eligibility left, but he dove back into the wisdom of those around him and chose to go pro. Once College players have lost all their eligibility, they lose all their leverage because they have nowhere else to go. So, it is very wise to leverage having the ability to come back into the best deal possible and then take it.

I didn’t think I would ever find myself in the middle of Arizona like I was at Cochise, but I’m happy that it did happen because it was the best thing to happen to my baseball career.
When I got to KU their game plan in terms of trying to develop is something I wanted to be a part of. They made me feel at home and welcome when I went on my visit. It felt like a new home and getting to talk to the coaches, they made it seem that they were putting together something special. It was a blessing to be a part of that and I am very thankful for them, because it was like a family and we were all playing together.

In his last outing at KU Shaw shoved against KState, a game I got to see at Globe Life in Arlington as part of the Big 12 Tournament, as he led his Jayhawks to victory over their arch-rival Kansas State.

Then he got drafted in the 16th Round last summer and made the hard decision to leave Lawrence.

Going back for my Senior year I felt like I would lose some leverage, so that was a big factor, and, honestly, I was just ready to go pro. I got the opportunity and it’s been a dream since I was a kid, so finally having that opportunity come to light, I was super thankful to everyone at KU, but I just wanted to get my pro career started.

Pro Career Gets Started

Shaw was drafted in the 16th Round of last summer’s draft (2024) and it didn’t take the organization long to send him to affiliated ball. He got to Rancho in late August and in just his 2nd appearance was immediately sent into the fire by being put in a game with the bases loaded and just 1 out and the game on the line. After giving up a sac fly on his 3rd pitch, he then finished the rest of the 8th scoreless before recording his first win as a pro by throwing up a zero in the 9th.

August 31st will be a day he will always remember as well as September 4th, just a couple of days later when he recorded his first save as a pro.

When asked what his coolest moment as a pro so far has been, this is what he had to say.

I’d say getting the first save in my 2nd outing because the game was tied in the 8th when I came in, and then a guy got a sac fly. But I was able to minimize it, then the guys scored 3 in the top of 9, and it was awesome being in that same situation.

Elijah Hainline made a huge play for the 2nd out, and then being able to get the last out to close it out was huge and it was an unbelievable feeling.

Pitch Mix and Approach

Everyone in professional baseball is talented, so sometimes the difference between one prospect advancing over the other is that they have something that is unique or different. Shaw has all the typical underlying metrics you’d want in a left-handed pitcher, but he also has one pitch that stands out above others, his sweeper.

Click to watch Shaw in action while he’s talking about his sweeper

Sweeper: Shaw’s sweeper is unique because it breaks almost straight sideways, and registers negative vertical breaks. That’s a pitch that is going to be very effective against any hitter with a North/South bat angle or swing plane, which is seemingly every professional hitter of this generation.

He’s thrown that sweeper for basically his entire pitching career, dating back to his little league days, and it’s been his “go-to” strike-out pitch. Beyond the crazy break of the pitch, it’s also effective because he tunnels it off of his fastball, so hitters have a harder time identifying the pitch and making good swing decisions on it.

Click to Watch Shaw in action while he talks about his entire pitch mix and how it works together

Entire Pitch Mix: Shaw also throws a cut fastball and a circle change. He hasn’t thrown his change up as much in games because it’s still somewhat in development, but is looking to use it more because having a reliable 3rd pitch will make him more effective.

Click to watch Shaw in action as he talks about the style of pitcher he is

Style: Shaw has been more of a finesse pitcher, but is topping at 95, and definitely has room to grow. It’s a perfect setup because he’s always had an execution focus, and as he adds velo, could also become somewhat of a power pitcher too. Power pitchers with an execution focus are rare, especially when they’re left-handed and stand 6’4″.

Click to watch Shaw in action while talking about the biggest adjustment the Dodgers have made with him.

Adjustments: The Dodgers, as they always do, broke down Shaw and his mechanics, and have added a little more counter-rotation to his motion. The added counter rotation should add efficiency by syncing up his body with his arm angle, and it should also give him more power.

Excited About the Future

Shaw is 6’4″, he’s left-handed, has the ability to grow velocity, is incorporating a change-up, and is eager to learn any new way that may help. Those types of prospects, the ones that have great size and ability, but then, also are so open to new ways to improve tend to embrace the process of finding their best version. And, when prospects maximize their potential, that’s when they give themselves their best shot to make the Major Leagues, something we hope happens for Shaw in the not so distant future.

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