Maryland Proves To Be The Right Fit For Shaw

Matthew Shaw SS / OF / Worcester Academy, MA / 2020

First the Worcester Academy junior had to prove himself to the Big 10 school.

“They originally saw me at the Future Games,” reflected the fourth-ranked 2020 in New England. “My coach reached out to them the first day of the Future Games. I talked to them and they said they were already looking at a 2020 shortstop. But the next day I had a big game, I hit two doubles and I talked to them that night. They said we saw you today and you can hit.”

A visit to Maryland convinced the 5-10 175-pounder where he wanted to go to college.

“When I visited Maryland it was different than all the other schools,” Shaw explained. “They took us to lunch and showed us the whole campus. All the Maryland coaches were young guys, they were able to look at things in my perspective. I just fell in love with it.”

But was going to school that far from home the right choice?

“I came home and after a couple weeks of talking to my family and coaches I realized I didn’t want to look for another school,” the top-rated junior shortstop in New England said. “I loved Maryland and decided I wanted to make my commitment there.”

While just a 45-minute plane ride, it takes more than six hours to reach the university from Shaw’s home in Massachusetts.

“Definitely one of the plusses if I stayed up north to play was my family could come see me more often, so I had to weigh all the options,” Shaw noted. “I just wasn’t sure. Obviously I wanted my family to see me, but after going there - and the trip wasn’t that bad - I saw it was a good school to go to even if there wasn’t baseball. After that it was easy to convince my parents and brothers. As much as I’d love to play here so they could watch, I felt I would be better off going down there.”

The weather in Maryland also play a small role.

“Definitely since I was young I wanted to play in the south,” Shaw said. “Playing in warm weather does not compare with playing in the snow. I knew if I ended up in the north I was used to it, but it was definitely a plus when looking at southern schools. Maryland was better with both ... the weather and for a school in the south it wasn’t as far for my family.”

An opportunity to be part of the Big 10 added to the equation.