All right, so this turned out to be a win-win for everyone except left-handed pitcher Ryan Borucki, who days after getting called up from Triple-A has been designated for assignment to make room for the team’s top catching prospect Miguel Amaya.

The Cubs are still evaluating Yan Gomes, who was taken out of Monday night’s game against the Washington Nationals after a backswing struck his head in the first inning. So, Gomes won’t be playing tonight and Tucker Barnhart is the only other catcher on the active roster. So, the Cubs are just making sure they have someone else they can turn to in case of emergency and for now that will be Amaya.

Cubs have called up catcher Miguel Amaya called up from Double A.

LHP Ryan Borucki designated for assignment.

Yan Gomes is still under evaluation.
— Meghan Montemurro (@M_Montemurro) May 2, 2023

So, the Cubs are back to having three catchers on their roster, but we don’t know yet if Gomes will miss extended time or not. If the veteran catcher is placed on the concussion injured list, then he will be out at least seven days. At this point, we still don’t know how long Amaya will be up for, but I hope we at least get to see him play before he goes back down to probably Triple-A.

There are so many fun storylines in the Cubs farm system this year and Amaya’s comeback is certainly one of them. We’re talking about a guy who was the team’s number one prospect a handful of years ago and was considered a top-100 prospect in baseball. But since 2021, Amaya has suffered several injuries, including Tommy John surgery that helped repair his elbow, which had cost him most of the 2021 season and forced him to not catch in the 2022 season.

But now, Amaya is in the big leagues with the Cubs.

Miguel Amaya’s Injuries and Comeback

Amaya only played in 23 games during the 2021 season, when he first went on the injured list on June 5, and eventually the catcher was placed on the 60-day injured list in late July. Amaya did not return and during the offseason the Cubs announced that he needed Tommy John surgery. The good news was that Amaya was able to play in 2022, with the caveat that he wouldn’t be able to catch, as he was still recovering from the elbow surgery.

And hey, Amaya looked pretty good at the plate last season, getting back on the field in the Arizona League during the summer before he was assigned to Double-A. In 28 games with the Tennessee Smokies, Amaya slashed .278/.379/.485, with four home runs and a 12% walk rate in 116 plate appearances. But even his success last year came with a couple hiccups, as Amaya missed time because of a dislocated finger and then he wasn’t able to play in the Arizona Fall League because he suffered a Lisfranc fracture in his left foot in September.

Now, in 2023, Amaya is showing that once healthy he is a legit prospect. So far in 13 games at Double-A, the right-handed hitting catcher has a slash line of .273/.411/.659, with four home runs and five doubles. Amaya has started 11 games behind the plate for the Tennessee Smokies this year.