{"id":96998,"date":"2025-09-22T21:13:52","date_gmt":"2025-09-22T21:13:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=96998"},"modified":"2025-09-22T21:13:52","modified_gmt":"2025-09-22T21:13:52","slug":"cubs-rookie-matt-shaw-gets-rare-exemption-to-skip-game-to-attend-charlie-kirks-memorial-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=96998","title":{"rendered":"Cubs Rookie Matt Shaw Gets Rare Exemption to Skip Game to Attend Charlie Kirk\u2019s Memorial Service"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chicago Cubs rookie Matt Shaw; right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk.Credit :<\/p>\n

Mary DeCicco\/MLB Photos via Getty; Nordin Catic\/Getty<\/p>\n

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NEED TO KNOW<\/h3>\n
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  • The Chicago Cubs allowed rookie Matt Shaw a rare excused absence from their game on Sept. 21 so he could attend Charlie Kirk’s memorial service<\/li>\n
  • League sources anonymously told The Athletic and Chicago Sun Times<\/em> that Shaw missed Sunday’s game as he traveled to Arizona for the right-wing podcaster’s memorial<\/li>\n
  • The Cubs lost to the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday, 1-0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

    Chicago Cubs rookie Matt Shaw was given a rare exemption by his team to attend the memorial of Charlie Kirk.<\/p>\n

    According to The Athletic and the Chicago Sun-Times, Shaw was absent during his team’s loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday, Sept. 21 so he could attend the the right-wing commentator’s memorial at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.<\/p>\n

    Shaw, 23, reportedly traveled to Arizona specifically for Kirk’s memorial, multiple team and league sources told The Athletic, “on condition of anonymity to talk freely about a sensitive matter.”<\/p>\n

    Cubs manager Craig Counsell told reporters Shaw “was unavailable today” after the game, which Chicago lost 1-0 to the Cincinnati Reds on the road, because “he attended the funeral of a friend,” per Sun-Times <\/em>reporter Maddie Lee.<\/p>\n

    Matt Shaw of the Chicago Cubs on Aug. 13, 2025 in Toronto.Cole Burston\/Getty<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    He is expected to be back with the team for their next game on Tuesday, Sept. 23, according to Lee.<\/p>\n

    Shaw also was listed as out for the Cubs’ game after Kirk’s death on Sept. 10, citing a personal matter, per the Sun-Times<\/em>. He came in to pinch-hit later in the game, and following the 3-2 win over the Atlanta Braves, Shaw declined to speak with reporters through a media representative.<\/p>\n

    Kirk, the founder of\u00a0Turning Point USA who was fatally shot during a campus event at Utah Valley University, was a fan of the Cubs and had attended a game in August. After the game, he posed with Shaw on the field for a photo shared on social media.<\/p>\n

    Kirk’s memorial on Sept. 21 included speeches from his widow, Erika Kirk, Vice President JD Vance and President Donald Trump. During his eulogy, Trump, 79, praised Kirk, calling him “a giant of his generation.”<\/p>\n

    \u201cI know I speak for everyone here today when I say that none of us will ever forget Charlie,” he said before claiming that the Illinois-born podcaster’s final plea to him was to “save Chicago.”<\/p>\n

    “We\u2019re gonna do that, we\u2019re gonna save Chicago from horrible crime,” said Trump, who has threatened to send National Guard troops into the city as part of a federal crackdown on crime, as he has done in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n

    Tyler Robinson\u00a0has been accused of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University during a campus event. The 22-year-old is being held at the Utah County Jail without bail.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Chicago Cubs rookie infielder Matt Shaw was reportedly given a rare excused absence to skip playing a game so he could attend Charlie Kirk’s memorial service on Sunday, Sept. 21, according to The Athletic and Chicago Sun-Times.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":96999,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-96998","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\nCubs Rookie Matt Shaw Gets Rare Exemption to Skip Game to Attend Charlie Kirk\u2019s Memorial Service - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=96998\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cubs Rookie Matt Shaw Gets Rare Exemption to Skip Game to Attend Charlie Kirk\u2019s Memorial Service - 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