Cubs Offseason Position Review: Catcher

A look back at how each position performed in 2025, and a look ahead to 2026. These posts will compare the MLB rankings from 2024 with those produced in 2025, as well as individual statistics for all players who played the position in 2025.

Here are other entries:
First Base
Second Base

Positional Rankings: 2025 vs 2024

Stat	2024	2025	Change
WAR	-0.3 (29th)	4.0 (8th)	+4.3 (+21)
HR	14 (25th)	29 (t4th)	+15 (+21)
RBI	73 (t15th)	95 (4th)	+22 (+11)
OPS	.601 (26th)	.749 (11th)	+.148 (+15)
wRC+	68 (t26th)	108 (t8th)	+40 (+18)
DRS	0 (t13th)	4 (t10th)	+4 (+3)
FRM	-11.7 (29th)	-2.2 (20th)	+9.5 (+9)
rSB	-1 (t19th)	2 (t4th)	+3 (+15)

Values are total and then MLB rank in parentheses
DRS = Defensive Runs Saved
FRM = Framing Runs Above Average
rSB = Stolen Base Runes Saved Above Average (see DRS for definition)

Offensively in 2024, the catcher position was abysmal for the Cubs. They were 2nd to last in the MLB in WAR for catchers, and were in the bottom 6 for home runs, OPS, and weighted runs created +.

Individual Stats

Name	G	WAR	HR	RBI	OPS	wRC+	DRS	FRM	rSB
Carson Kelly	100	2.6	17	49	.767	116	4	-4.2	3
Reese McGuire	38	0.8	9	24	.699	89	-1	2.6	-1
Miguel Amaya	27	0.6	3	22	.758	108	1	-0.6	0
Moisés Ballesteros	1	-0.1	0	0	.000	-100	0	0.0	0

Carson Kelly was signed to provide a veteran to hold down the catcher position with Miguel Amaya – who had shown offensive improvement at the end of 2024. While it seemed they were playing almost every other day early in the season, a hot start by Kelly turned him into the primary catcher.

Taking a look at Kelly splits throughout the season, there was some major variation:

Month	G	HR	RBI	OPS	wRC+
Mar/Apr	17	7	21	1.347	257
May	19	2	3	0.620	78
Jun	16	0	2	0.569	63
Jul	18	4	10	0.951	160
Aug	22	0	7	0.503	48
Sept/Oct	17	4	7	0.676	87

He was amazing in April and July, Decent in May and September and bad in June and August. I’m not sure it was a matter of fatigue, as Amaya and McGuire got regular playing time.

Amaya saw a continuation of his improved hitting that was seen at the end of 2024, with an OPS and wRC+ nearly as good as Kelly. The Cubs appeared to be ready to have 3 catchers on the roster, but an ankle injury just after he returned from his oblique strain ended his season. He played a few games in the minors on his rehab as the season ended, but did not make it onto the playoff roster.

There were concerns when Amaya went down with an injury, but Reece McGuire did an admirable job, as a veteran sho had been signed to a minor league deal, just in case of an injury. He also provided a left-handed bat, making it a quasi-platoon with Kelly.

There was some talk about Moises Ballesteros playing catcher in the majors, but it really is feeling like a Kyle Schwarber situation – at least from a defensive perspective. He will get at bats as a DH and possibly a first baseman.

Defensively, the numbers were not quite as good. With the ABS challenge system coming into play, the value of framing might be decreased a little, but most pitches will still be at the discretion of the home plate umpire. Based on the numbers, neither Kelly, nor Amaya were very good framers, and I would not expect to see too much improvement of this in the future. Kelly was very good at controlling the running game, as he was tied for 4th in rSB (Stolen Base Runs Saved Above Average) which attempts to measure how a catcher did at preventing stolen bases by throwing runners out or causing them not to run.

2026 Outlook

Player	2026 Contract
Carson Kelly	$5M in 2026, mutual option in 2027
Miguel Amaya	$820K in 2026 (pre-arbitration)
Moises Ballesteros	$820K in 2026 (pre-arbitration)
Reece McGuire	~$1.9M in arbitration (if tendered)

The thought right now is that Reece McGuire will not be tendered a contract and will be a allowed to become a free agent. It would be great to bring him him back on another minor league deal, but he probably did enough to get a major league deal with another team.

Based on the performance in 2025, I would expect that the Cubs will go with Kelly and Amaya in 2026, with only $5.8M in salary allocated to the catcher position. With McGuire likely gone, and Ballesteros is unlikely to play catcher as anything more than an emergency replacement, I would think a minor league deal for another veteran catcher would be expected.

Overall, I would not expect as much production from the catcher position next season, unless Miguel Amaya can continue to improve offensively and can manage to stay healthy. Carson Kelly is bound for some regression, and will certainly not see a repeat of what he did in April. But we should not see a return to the poor performance from 2024.