Digging into the numbers behind Miguel Amaya's dramatic turnaround at the plate

In a matter of weeks, we've gone from pounding the panic button on the Cubs' catching situation to basking in the glory of a complete 180 at the plate from Miguel Amaya, who is slashing .417/.440/.708 over his last 14 games - including six hits over the first two games against Pittsburgh.

That's not to say the Cubs' offseason approach to the position has changed. But Amaya is certainly doing what he can to show he's a legitimate option to platoon back there in 2025. After posting a .554 OPS in the first half, he's put up a .953 mark - a staggering 400-point jump which is impressive in any sense, let alone when you consider he's a young catcher making an in-season adjustment.

For me, it’s no surprise watching him have this level of success at the big-league level. I’ve always known that it was in there and it just makes me happy and very proud of him for having this level of success because I know how hard he’s worked for many years.

Amaya has completely transformed his approach at the plate, switching to a toe-tap over a leg kick. The result? An improved chase rate and being more aggressive against pitches in the zone. Now up to an 89 wRC+ on the season, he's more or less a league average catcher offensively - a thought that would have been downright unthinkable a couple of months ago.

If he can close out the season at this level, Jed Hoyer and Carter Hawkins will have some tough decisions to make when it comes to how they handle the offseason. Since July 1, Amaya has put up a .347/.391/.571 line - although it's still in an admittedly small 108 trips to the plate. There's more to prove, but the early returns are pointing to Amaya being part of the bigger picture in 2025.