Grading The 2025 Chicago Cubs: Catchers

[RandallPnkFloyd]

Image courtesy of © Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

That the Chicago Cubs ended up with one of the best catching groups in all of baseball in 2025 isn't a surprise. How they got there, however, certainly qualifies as one. 

Despite very mild rumblings about the team seeking to upgrade the position in 2024 and into the subsequent offseason, last year's second-half emergence of Miguel Amaya as a hitter changed the calculus a bit. Rather than seek a pure upgrade, the Cubs shifted their attention to acquiring an effective supplement to Amaya, both in terms of the bat and the glove. That supplement arrived in the form of stable veteran Carson Kelly. 

Kelly's shocking output in April brought far more than expected, of course. What begin as something of a timeshare graduated to more playing time his way, though Amaya was able to cycle in roughly every two or three days. Distribution of playing time wound up as a moot discussion, however, as an oblique injury sent Amaya to the injured list before May reached its close. He'd return later in the year, but headed back to the IL almost immediately after an ankle injury running through first base would prove to be the ultimate end to his campaign. 

In his stead, the Cubs called up veteran backstop Reese McGuire. Something of a journeyman over the last couple of years, McGuire went from spring training invitee to crucial backup to Kelly in Amaya's absence. His combination of defense and occasional power proved to be the right balance as a No. 2 backstop, with the Cubs choosing to hold onto him even upon Amaya's one-day return from the IL. The trio were effective enough at various points that the team didn't appear inclined to give even a shred of time behind the plate to Moisés Ballesteros, who appeared in just six innings as a defender.

All told, the Cubs finished with three of the top 38 catchers in wRC+ (minimum of 100 plate appearances, to account for Amaya), while Carson Kelly (2.6) landed as the No. 13 catcher in terms of fWAR (minimum of 400 plate appearances). As a collective, their fWAR (4.2) ended the year as the No. 7 catching group in the sport. Let's take a look at how everything broke down for the team's main trio behind the plate. 

Carson Kelly: B+

It would be really easy to over-grade a player like Kelly, who completely outperformed any expectations that the baseball world might've had for him. His 115 wRC+ was a new career best, while he also maintained the steady strikeout (19.0 percent) and walk (10.7 percent) rates that he reset with Detroit and Texas in 2024. The most notable aspect of Kelly's season, though, lived on the power side. His .179 ISO and 17 home runs were each his best since 2019.

At the same time, any conversation about Kelly's offensive success needs to note how much his March & April output buoyed his end-of-season numbers. He wRC+'d 257, checked in at a .480 ISO, and struck out just 9.0 percent of the time against a 22.4 percent walk rate in that first month. He had other flashes throughout the year, but was never able to replicate anything close to what he turned in out of the starting gates. Still, when factoring in the defense — where he was above average everywhere except framing — Kelly was able to provide a healthy bit of stability, even with bouts of inconsistency at the plate throughout the year.

Miguel Amaya: C

Conversely, attaching a grade to Amaya at all feels unfair given the volume of games lost due to injury. The amount of growth he demonstrated (on both sides of the ball) in 2024 warranted an opportunity to run as the top backstop for the Cubs in '25. And while that was unable to come to fruition given his two injuries, many of the signs of a breakout that he'd flashed last year were still present, primarily on the offensive side. He struck out slightly more and walked slightly less, but the results were there otherwise.

Though it was only 103 plate appearances, Amaya's 124 wRC+ indicated continued growth at the plate, while a .219 ISO showed that there's plenty of power to tap into. As far as his defense goes, the small sample wrought by injury left things fairly inconclusive, but he did wind up at least average in just about every regard. Assuming he's healthy from the jump in '26, it'll be interesting to see what the distribution looks like between Kelly & Amaya, given the former's strong performance in the latter's absence.

Reese McGuire: B

For what the Cubs needed out of their No. 2 spot sans Amaya (and visibly unwilling to hand legitimate time behind the plate to Moises Ballesteros), McGuire was just fine. His .226/.245/.444 slash line and 86 wRC+ don't read as particularly impressive, nor does his mere 2.9 percent walk rate. But he provided plenty of occasional power, indicated by his slugging percentage and a .218 ISO, which he did while grading out as an 80th-percentile pitch framer and above-average blocker behind the plate. And that's really the exact type of profile you'd want to get out of a position that doesn't run deep in offensive talent throughout the league: an occasional contributor on offense who provides stability with the glove. It's not a lot that you're going to get, but considering the injury context and what's needed in that type of role, McGuire was perfectly fine. The context helps his grade here.

Moisés Ballesteros: Inconclusive

The Cubs' No. 2 offensive prospect behind Owen Caissie, it's tough to justify incorporating Ballesteros as a part of this discussion. From an offensive standpoint, he came on strong to close the year after two brief stints with the team earlier in the season. A final output of .298/.394/.474 with a 143 wRC+ in 66 plate appearances will certainly work. But he also logged only six innings of playing time behind the plate, meaning that we can't really offer a grade from a positional standpoint. Nevertheless, with McGuire now a free agent and Kelly a year away from joining him (to say nothing of the unlikelihood of a Kyle Tucker return), Ballesteros' role in 2026 will be fascinating to watch. Not only in terms of his own distribution between serving as a catcher and designated hitter, but how much he could factor in behind the plate with McGuire likely joining a new club ahead of next year.

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[Ruxskull]

Using Ballesteros as a PH, DH and very occasional starter plus a late inning non-defensive sub (blowout games) would be useful. Having a third catcher behind Kelly and Amaro that can hit sounds like a sound plan to start the season. Good to have a key position set for the year in the October before.