Miguel Amaya (baseball)

Miguel Antonio Amaya (born March 9, 1999) is a Panamanian professional baseball catcher for the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2023.

Career
Amaya signed with the Chicago Cubs as an international free agent in July 2015. He made his professional debut in 2016 with the Dominican Summer League Cubs where he batted .245 with one home run and 22 runs batted in (RBIs) in 58 games.

Amaya played 2017 with the Eugene Emeralds where he slashed .228/.266/.338 with three home runs and 26 RBIs in 58 games, and spent 2018 with the South Bend Cubs, earning Midwest League All-Star honors and slashing .256/.349/.403 with 12 home runs and 52 RBIs in 116 games. He was selected to play in that year's All-Star Futures Game.

In 2019, Amaya played for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, batting .235/.351/.402 with 11 home runs and 57 RBIs over 99 games. He was also selected to the All-Star Futures Game for the second consecutive year. He was selected to play in the Arizona Fall League for the Mesa Solar Sox following the season.

Following the 2019 season, the Cubs added Amaya to their 40-man roster. He did not play a minor league game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. He underwent Tommy John surgery during the 2021–22 offseason.

The Cubs optioned Amaya to the Double-A Tennessee Smokies to begin the 2023 season. In 13 games for Tennessee, he hit .273/.411/.659 with four home runs and eight RBIs. On May 2, 2023, the Cubs promoted Amaya to the major leagues for the first time.