When Oneil Cruz’s ground ball flew to Dansby Swanson at shortstop, Miguel Amaya ran toward first base with boundless nerves to intercept an obvious throw.

Who could blame him?

Finally, Amaya faced his first no-hitter, a great achievement for a catcher.

However, Amaya stopped halfway to first base – Swanson is a two-time Gold Glover and has made many plays like this.

“Believe in my shortstop,” Amaya said.

When the ball landed in Michael Busch’s glove at first base, it was time to celebrate – and Amaya was overcome with emotion. He hugged Porter Hodge, the Cubs’ rookie closer who got the last three outs. Then Amaya joined the usual high-five line after victories, but he used his glove to protect his face.

“Sure, everyone has feelings,” said Amaya. “I was in tears and I feel so special and emotional.”

It was a beautiful, crowning moment for the Cubs’ in-house catcher. Just 18 months ago, the idea that Amaya would be the Cubs’ everyday catcher — not to mention catching the team’s first no-hitter since 2021 and the first no-hitter at Wrigley Field since 1972 — seemed unlikely.

And yet there he was on Wednesday, catching the second combined no-hitter in team history – this time from Shota Imanaga, Nate Pearson and Hodge. And it was Amaya who helped lead them all evening.

Complete coverage of the no-hitter
–WATCH: The final out as the Cubs put the finishing touches on the no-no
–Every out from the 2nd combined no-hitter in franchise history
–Shota Imanaga was unaware of the no-hitter during the outing
–Craig Counsell explains the thought process behind eliminating Imanaga from the game
–Amaya and Hodge react after the last exit
–Analyzing the epic pitching performance of Imanaga, Pearson and Hodge
–The last out in every Cubs no-hitter since 2008
–Alex Cohen and Jim Deshaies summarize no-hitter
–Pat Hughes’ call for the last out
–Miguel Esparza’s announcement of the final in Spanish
–Dansby Swanson’s selfless gesture for the Cubs pitchers during the no-hitter

“It’s just as important for the catcher, really,” manager Craig Counsell said. “And I know Miggy is (in the clubhouse), and he’s rightly very proud. It’s a special game for a catcher to be in.”

“And the guys there are celebrating Miggy just like Shota, Nate and Porter. So Miggy deserves a lot of recognition tonight and I’m really proud that he could be a part of it.”

This is a former top prospect whose biggest developmental issue was not being able to stay on the field. A catcher who underwent Tommy John surgery and suffered a foot injury that limited his time behind the plate. A minor league player who didn’t play for a year when a global pandemic halted development for him and countless other prospects.

But instead of feeling sorry for himself or letting it affect him, Amaya kept working and focused on the one area he could always control – his work with the pitching staff. Amaya takes pride in that, saying earlier this season, “The most important thing is to help my pitchers. That’s my priority.”

“It’s just cool how proud he is to be the catcher for the pitching staff,” Nico Hoerner said. “He’s definitely someone who embodies everything you want in a team leader behind the plate, even though he’s still pretty young. And the way he prioritizes the pitchers and winning and takes care of the team is a big deal for him and means a lot to us.”

So Amaya continued to work on that aspect, focusing on report writing, studying the hitters, and working with his pitchers to figure out how best to record the outs.

On Wednesday night, all that work was rewarded – and he passed the recognition on to his pitchers, to whom he attaches so much importance.

“Well, it means a lot to me,” Amaya said. “A lot of work, a lot of note-taking, some reports, studying every hitter from the other side. And … just feeling comfortable and having the confidence that I’m going to execute every button I push correctly.”

“I can push a button, but if they don’t execute the pitch, nothing happens. So they did their thing, too.”