3 unexpected factors contributing to the Cubs' early season success

With the Chicago Cubs sitting on top of the National League Central and collecting four series victories in the last two weeks, there are many pleasant surprises contributing to the team's success.

Whether its in the bullpen, starting rotation or the lineup, these are three areas where the Cubs are getting fantastic early returns in their battle through a tough portion of the schedule.

1. Miguel Amaya and Carson Kelly

After getting bottom-five offensive production from the catcher's position last year (69 wRC+), Chicago's new catching duo of Miguel Amaya and Carson Kelly is starting the season strong. As a duo, they are walking at a 12.9 percent rate, striking out just 15.3 percent clip and rank second in the league with a 180 wRC+ through 22 games.

Carson Kelly, who the Cubs inked to a two-year contract in the offseason, owns a remarkable 1.538 OPS, with six extra-base hits, 11 walks, 13 RBI and only four strikeouts in 40 plate appearances. Kelly was brought in as a defensive catcher to provide veteran stability behind Amaya, and something around league average was the expectation offensively. So far, the 30-year-old is blowing those expectations out of the water, even recording the first cycle for a Chicago Cub since 1993.

Kelly won't be able to keep this production up over the entire season, but anything above average is a major boost to the lineup and a weight off Amaya's shoulders. Amaya is continuing his solid offense that he enjoyed in the second half of 2024, where things improved significantly after he eliminated a leg kick from his batting stance.

This turnaround from the catcher's spot is huge, considering the Cubs need quality at-bats from as many spots as possible. Kyle Tucker is the only true superstar in the lineup and Chicago is already diminished at the third base position, less than a month into the season.

2. Matthew Boyd's dominance

Other than Shota Imanaga, Matthew Boyd has been the most consistent member of the Chicago Cubs' starting rotation. Through his first four games, the 34-year-old owns a 2.01 ERA, 20 strikeouts, and two quality starts in 22.1 innings pitched.

Boyd is using his finesse style of pitching to avoid hard contact and get hitters to chase at a solid rate (31.6 percent). With Justin Steele on the shelf for the remainder of the season, this is the version of Boyd the Cubs spent $29 million for, and it's nice to see him finding his groove early.

The southpaw has also been able to limit damage against tough lineups in each of his starts, with shutout performances against the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres. He was also able to make it six innings with three earned runs against the Los Angeles Dodgers, which is no small feat considering the lineup consists of three former MVPs.

3. Brad Keller's career resurrection

Reliever Brad Keller is turning into one of the diamond in the rough signings the Cubs' front office has been known for in recent years. The 29-year-old is enjoying a career resurgence with Chicago after struggling to make it as a starting pitcher for the better part of seven seasons with the Kansas City Royals, Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox.

It's still very early in the season, and Keller only has seven innings pitched so far, but he has been very effective in limited action. Although his 3.86 ERA appears a bit high, Keller has only surrendered three earned runs on the year and two of them were in one appearance against the Diamondbacks on March 28. After that game, Keller recorded four straight clean outings and has racked up nine strikeouts on the season.

More impressively is the fact that Keller is posting the highest fastball velocity of his career, averaging 96.9 MPH and touching 99 at times. This blistering fastball, coupled with Keller's wipeout slider, is generating an elite chase rate (40 percent) and groundball percentage (57.1). Keller's hard hit rate of 19 percent is also in the 99th percentile, according to Baseball Savant.

Keller only signed a minor league contract with Chicago, and he is providing immense value out of the bullpen so far and increasing his trust in high-leverage situations. So far, this has been an extremely valuable offseason addition and the veteran has been a bright spot in a shaky bullpen that has mostly been a weakness for the Cubs in 2025.