Shelby Miller

Shelby Miller

Miller with the Arizona Diamondbacks
Arizona Diamondbacks – No. 26
Pitcher
Born: (1990-10-10) October 10, 1990
Houston, Texas
Bats: Right Throws: Right
MLB debut
September 5, 2012, for the St. Louis Cardinals
MLB statistics
(through 2016 season)
Win–loss record 35–47
Earned run average 3.66
Strikeouts 553
Teams
Career highlights and awards

Shelby Charles Miller (born October 10, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball (MLB). Miller made his major league debut in 2012 with the St. Louis Cardinals and has also played for the Atlanta Braves.

Drafted by the Cardinals out of Brownwood High School in the first round of the 2009 MLB draft, Miller became one of the sport's highest-rated prospects. He is a recipient of numerous awards, including the Cardinals' minor league pitcher of the year in 2010, Baseball America's number one Cardinals prospect from 2009–11, and selection to the All-Star Futures Game in 2010 and 2011. A fourth award, MLB.com's Pitching Performance of the Month, was the result of his first MLB complete game shutout in May 2013, a one-hitter against the Colorado Rockies.

After the 2014 season, the Cardinals traded Miller to the Braves. In 2015, Miller was named to the MLB All-Star Game. That offseason, the Braves traded Miller to the Diamondbacks.

Amateur career

Miller was born in Houston, Texas, and attended Brownwood High School in Brownwood, Texas. He played for the school's baseball team as a pitcher. In his sophomore year, he threw a no-hitter and helped lead his team to the regional semifinals.[1] As a junior in 2008, Miller threw three no-hitters in consecutive games, including one perfect game.[1]

In Miller's senior year, he pitched to a 10–2 win–loss record with a 1.90 earned run average (ERA), and recorded 153 strikeouts in  77 2⁄3 innings pitched, with his fastball recorded as fast as 97 miles per hour (156 km/h). He drew comparisons to fellow Texas power pitchers Nolan Ryan and Josh Beckett.[2] In addition to baseball, he played tight end and defensive end for the school's American football team.[3] He played quarterback until the seventh grade, when he suffered a staph infection, allowing Casey Pachall to win the role.[4] Miller committed to attend Texas A&M University on a scholarship to play college baseball for the Texas A&M Aggies baseball team.[5]

Professional career

Draft and minor leagues

The St. Louis Cardinals selected Miller in the first round of the 2009 Major League Baseball draft.[6] Rather than attend Texas A&M, Miller signed with the Cardinals, receiving a $2.875 million signing bonus on the August 17 deadline. The Cardinals assigned him to the Quad Cities River Bandits of the Class A Midwest League, where he made two appearances.[7] He returned to Quad Cities for the 2010 season, where he compiled a 7–5 win-loss record, a 3.62 ERA, 140 strikeouts and 33 walks in  104 1⁄3 innings pitched.[8][9] During the season, he appeared in the All-Star Futures Game.[10][11] He was named the Cardinals' minor league pitcher of the year after the season.[12]

Miller began the 2011 season with the Palm Beach Cardinals of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League (FSL). He was named the Cardinal Nation pitcher of the month for May 2011 after posting a 2.32 ERA for the month, and was promoted to the Springfield Cardinals of the Class AA Texas League at the beginning of June. At the time of his promotion, he led the FSL with 81 strikeouts, and was considered the best pitching prospect in baseball by Keith Law of ESPN.com.[13][14] Along with Carlos Martínez, Miller represented the Cardinals at the 2011 All-Star Futures Game.[15] He made Baseball America's top prospect list in the 2011 midseason.[16] The Cardinals named Miller their minor league pitcher of the month for June 2011.[17] He pitched to a 9–3 win-loss record with a 2.70 ERA with 89 strikeouts in  86 2⁄3 innings pitched with Springfield.[18] Miller totaled 25 starts with Palm Beach and Springfield, completing  139 1⁄2 innings and allowing a 2.70 ERA, 112 hits, 53 walks, and striking out 170 batters for an average of 11.0 strikeouts per nine innings pitched (K/9).[19] After the season, Baseball America rated his fastball as the best in the Cardinals system, and named him a starting pitcher on their 2011 Minor League All-Star team.[20] He was again named the Cardinals' Minor League Pitcher of the Year.[18]

Miller pitching on the road for St. Louis Cardinals in 2013

Miller entered the 2012 season ranked as the fifth best prospect in baseball by MLB.com.[8] After competing for a spot on the Cardinals roster, he began the 2012 season with the Memphis Redbirds of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League (PCL).[18] Though he struggled in the beginning of the 2012 season, pitching to an ERA above 6.00 through the beginning of July, Miller pitched to an ERA below 3.00 for the remainder of the minor league season,[21] and recorded 160 strikeouts for the Redbirds in 137 innings pitched.[22]

St. Louis Cardinals

2012 season

Miller made his MLB debut on September 5, 2012, against the New York Mets, as a relief pitcher. He threw two shutout innings, giving up one hit, walking none, and striking out four.[23] Amidst the Cardinals' competition for a playoff spot, Miller recorded his first major league win as a reliever in an extra inning game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 16.[24]

Miller started his first major league game on October 3, against the Cincinnati Reds. Miller pitched six shutout innings, allowing only one hit, and striking out seven. He appeared twice in relief for the Cardinals during the 2012 National League Championship Series (NLCS) against the San Francisco Giants, allowing four hits and two runs in  3 1⁄3 innings.[25] For the season, Miller completed  153 2⁄3 innings combined in the major league regular season, postseason and minor leagues.[26]

2013 regular season

Miller made the Cardinals' Opening Day starting rotation for the 2013 season,[25] following a spring training competition with Joe Kelly for the final spot in the rotation.[22] He threw his first career shutout in a 3–0 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 10, 2013.[27] After allowing a bloop single to Eric Young, Jr. to begin the match, Miller pitched the equivalent of a perfect game by retiring the next 27 batters in a row. He threw 113 pitches, 84 for strikes. He walked none, striking out a career-high 13, which tied the Cardinals' rookie record, also held by Dick Hughes and Scipio Spinks. It was the closest a Cardinals' rookie came to throwing a no-hitter since Bud Smith performed the feat in 2001.[28][29][30] His Game Score of 98 was the highest ever for a nine inning game thrown by a Cardinals pitcher. Miller's season performance vaunted him as an early Rookie of the Year award favorite.[31] He won the Pitching Performance of the Month award for May because of his one-hit game on May 10. He had a 2–1 win-loss record, walking only six and striking out 32 for the month, while leading the NL with a 1.82 ERA.[32]

The shortest start of Miller's career occurred in an August 7 start against the Los Angeles Dodgers. On the second pitch of the game, a line drive off Carl Crawford's bat glanced struck Miller's right elbow. He was removed from the game at that point. Follow-up x-rays were negative and the injury was characterized as an elbow contusion.[33] His ERA to that point in the season was 2.89 and he averaged 9.8 K/9.[34] On September 11, Miller continued his dominance over the Milwaukee Brewers, allowing five hits and striking out four in  6 2⁄3 innings.[35] Despite Miller picking up his 14th win on September 15, his ERA from August 1 until that point was 3.60, raising it 3.19 for the season.[36] In Miller's final start of the season, he won his 15th game, defeating the Washington Nationals. In turn, Jordan Zimmerman was denied his 20th victory.[37] As teammate Adam Wainwright defeated the Chicago Cubs in his final start of the season on September 28, 2013, he tied Zimmerman for the league lead in wins.[38] Miller's 15 wins tied for sixth and his 3.06 ERA was tenth in the NL.[26]

2013 postseason

Although Miller was on the roster for all three series in the Cardinals' 2013 postseason run, manager Mike Matheny did not place him in the starting rotation. Instead, he totaled a single inning in one relief appearance against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2013 National League Division Series (NLDS), in which he gave up one home run.[39] Matheny rebuffed the suggestion that he was a "misspent asset" on the 25-man roster. He specified that, "He's going to be a guy we’re going to use if we get into a situation where we’ve got a bunch of innings to eat up, whether it's at the front end or back. He's going to be our guy (if) we have to put things together."[40]

After losing the World Series in six games to the Boston Red Sox, Matheny and general manager John Mozeliak explained that Miller's role was as "insurance." In just one game until Michael Wacha's final start – which was the final game of the year – did a starter go less than five innings. Miller also became less effective as the season progressed late, with his strikeout rate decreasing and walk rate increasing. Said Matheny, "It would have to be a situation where we were pushing into a tight spot, and that's just not fair to him without having much action to this point. He's been exactly what we’ve needed up to this point. Fortunately we haven’t needed that long outing." Mozeliak added that "second-guessing the roster doesn’t have traction. His role was always that insurance. There were a lot of question marks as we were going into this on exactly how our rotation was going to unfold. The fact that everybody has stepped up changed the dynamic."[41]

After the season, Baseball America named Miller to their All-Rookie team as a starting pitcher.[42] He finished third in the NL Rookie of the Year balloting.[43]

2014 season

Having struggled with walks, command, and mechanical inconsistencies the first two months of the 2014 season, Miller added a sinker to his repertoire with the help of Justin Masterson and defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 5–0 in a complete-game shutout, his first of the season and second of his career. He took a no-hitter into the sixth inning, faced 30 total batters while striking out five and enjoyed much more consistent command.[44][45] He finished the season with a 3.74 ERA in 31 games started.[46] Miller pitched Game 4 of the 2014 NLDS, which the Cardinals won,[47] and Game 4 of the 2014 NLCS, where he struggled, failing to complete the fourth inning.[48]

Atlanta Braves

Miller during his tenure with the Atlanta Braves in 2015

On November 17, 2014, the Cardinals traded Miller and prospect Tyrell Jenkins to the Atlanta Braves for outfielder Jason Heyward and relief pitcher Jordan Walden.[46] On May 5, 2015, Miller threw a complete game shutout in just 99 pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies.[49] Twelve days later, Miller was one out away from throwing a no-hitter against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park when pinch hitter Justin Bour singled to break up the bid. Miller settled for a two-hit shutout, beating the Marlins 6–0. After the game, he improved to a 5–1 record and 1.33 ERA.[50]

Miller was selected to his first All-Star Game via the player balloting. His ERA up to that point was 2.07, which was the third lowest in all of baseball.[51] However, Miller didn't appear in the game at all. The two-hitter against the Marlins would serve as Miller's last win until his final start of the season, on October 4, when he pitched eight innings in a shutout effort against the St. Louis Cardinals.[52] Miller set a new franchise record winless streak of 24,[53] despite quality starts in fourteen of those games.[54] His ERA during the streak was 3.83, and was marred by a rocky September, in which he recorded a 7.11 ERA.[55] Until the October 4, 6–0 win against his former team, Miller's run support was at 2.3 runs per nine innings, ranking him third on a list of worst run support compiled since 1975.[56] He finished the season with 2.6 runs of support per nine innings, a 6–17 record, 3.02 ERA, and 173 strikeouts.[57] A run support average of 2.38 ranked tenth worst in MLB history.[58]

Arizona Diamondbacks

On December 9, 2015, the Braves traded Miller and Gabe Speier to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for Dansby Swanson, Ender Inciarte, and Aaron Blair.[59] Following the trade, Miller agreed to a contract worth $4.35 million.[60] Before the 2016 season began, Miller was projected to follow ace Zack Greinke in the rotation.[61] He struggled once the season began,[62] and was placed on the disabled list on May 24 due to a sprained index finger, making his return on June 20.[63] Miller pitched to a 2–9 record and a 7.14 ERA through the MLB All-Star break, when the Diamondbacks optioned him to the Reno Aces of the PCL.[64] Miller was recalled to start against the San Francisco Giants on August 31. He pitched five innings, yielding two runs on six hits.[65]

Pitching style

Whereas most starting pitchers utilize a fastball, a changeup, and a breaking ball, such as a slider or a curveball, Miller throws a fastball and curveball over 98% of the time. His fastball averages 94 miles per hour (151 km/h).[66]

Awards

Major leagues
Minor leagues

Personal life

Miller has three sisters.[68] His father, Mitch, is a member of the Brownwood Fire Department in Miller's hometown. Shannon Stone, a friend of the family and member of the Brownwood Fire Department, died at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington in 2011 when he reached for a ball tossed into the stands by Josh Hamilton and fell.[69]

Miller proposed to his girlfriend of two years, Amy Peters, on September 5, 2013. They were married on November 16, 2013.[70] He is close friends with his former Cardinals teammate, Joe Kelly; they served as best man at each other's wedding in the 2013 offseason.[71]

References

  1. 1 2 Lee, Mike (April 5, 2008). "Not a thing batters can do against Lions' star pitcher". Abilene Reporter-News. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  2. ↑ Fallstrom, R.B. (June 9, 2009). "Cardinals draft high school pitcher". USA Today. Associated Press. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  3. ↑ Lee, Mike (August 24, 2008). "Brownwood: Lions coach insists move to 3A won't change approach". Abilene Reporter-News. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  4. ↑ Miller, Jeff (August 21, 2011). "Rose Bowl champ TCU looks to replace Andy Dalton". USA Today. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  5. ↑ Davis, Brian (June 10, 2009). "A&M signee is selected by Cardinals: Brownwood pitcher appears likely to pick pros over college". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved May 12, 2013. (subscription required)
  6. ↑ Ren, Evan (August 20, 2009). "18-year-old Shelby Miller of Brownwood is officially a millionaire". San Angelo Standard-Times. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  7. ↑ Fallstrom, R.B. (August 25, 2009). "Cardinals' top pick Miller headed to Class A". USA Today. Associated Press. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  8. 1 2 Rains, B.J. (February 3, 2012). "Cards' prospect Miller not shy on expectations". Fox Sports Midwest. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  9. ↑ Strauss, Joe (May 4, 2010). "Shelby Miller continues strikeout surge : Sports". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  10. ↑ Thrall, Tommy (June 22, 2010). "Shelby Miller selected to Futures Game". MiLB.com. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  11. ↑ Hummel, Rick (July 11, 2011). "Shelby Miller shows his stuff in Futures Game". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved September 14, 2016.
  12. 1 2 Hart, Bill (January 29, 2011). "Cardinals have high hopes for Brownwood prospect Miller". Abilene Reporter-News. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  13. ↑ Walton, Brian (June 2, 2011). "Brown and Miller take May minor league awards". Fox Sports Midwest. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  14. ↑ Traub, Todd (August 2, 2011). "Texas notes: Miller shoulders load". MiLB.com. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  15. ↑ Leach, Matthew (June 23, 2011). "Miller, Martinez selected for Futures Game". MLB.com. Retrieved May 11, 2013.
  16. ↑ "Midseason Top 50 Prospects List". Baseball America. July 7, 2011. Retrieved May 11, 2013.
  17. ↑ Gordon, Jeff (July 7, 2011). "McClellan struggling to win". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  18. 1 2 3 4 Langosch, Jenifer (April 8, 2012). "Matheny goes with different lineup vs. Wolf". MLB.com. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  19. 1 2 "Shelby Miller minor league statistics & history". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
  20. 1 2 Cooper, J.J.; Eddy, Matt (September 16, 2011). "2011 Minor League All-Star Team". Baseball America. Retrieved October 2, 2011.
  21. ↑ Rudd, Brian (April 3, 2013). "Spring story lines can carry over into regular season". USA Today. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  22. 1 2 Gleeman, Aaron (March 25, 2013). "Cardinals choose top prospect Shelby Miller as fifth starter". NBC Sports. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  23. ↑ Calcaterra, Craig (September 6, 2012). "Shelby Miller debuts for the Cardinals". NBC Sports. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  24. ↑ "12-inning win over Dodgers was worth it". Chicago Tribune. Reuters. September 17, 2012. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  25. 1 2 Langosch, Jenifer (March 31, 2013). "Miller to make start in first turn through rotation". MLB.com. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  26. 1 2 "Shelby Miller statistics and history". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
  27. ↑ "Cardinals' Shelby Miller retires 27 straight in 1-hitter". USA Today. Associated Press. May 11, 2013. Retrieved May 11, 2013.
  28. ↑ Overbey, Steve (May 10, 2013). "One-hit wonder: Miller dominates Rockies: After allowing first-inning single, rookie retires final 27 batters". MLB.com. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
  29. ↑ Hummel, Rick (May 11, 2013). "Miller almost perfect in shutout win". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
  30. ↑ Timmermann, Tom (May 11, 2013). "Miller's masterpiece: 13 K's, one hit in 3–0 Cards win". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
  31. ↑ Goold, Derrick (May 11, 2013). "Was Miller's gem the best ever for a Cards pitcher?". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  32. 1 2 Barrett, Pete (June 7, 2013). "Miller nabs May Pitching Performance honor: Cardinals rookie garners 51 percent of vote after retiring 27 straight Rockies". MLB.com.
  33. ↑ Silva, Drew (August 7, 2013). "Shelby Miller leaves game after taking liner off elbow". NBC Sports. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  34. ↑ Fagan, Ryan (August 7, 2013). "Shelby Miller injury update: Cardinals SP hit in elbow by liner, exits game". The Sporting News. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  35. ↑ Scott, Bill (September 11, 2013). "Miller's dominance of Brewers continues". WRN Wisconsin Radio Network. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  36. ↑ Clancy, Sam (September 16, 2013). "Does Shelby Miller have a case for the Rookie of the Year Award?". www.calltothepen.com. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  37. ↑ "NL capsules". AP News Archive. Associated Press. September 26, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  38. ↑ "Wainwright wins 19th, Cardinals beat Cubs 6–2". Daily Herald. Associated Press. September 28, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  39. ↑ Thornburg, Chad (October 25, 2013). "Shelby Miller, Edward Mujica puts Cards first while awaiting opportunity". www.stlouis,cardinals.mlb.com. Retrieved November 2, 2013.
  40. ↑ Goold, Derrick (October 21, 2013). "Miller waits for his turn to pitch in World Series". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
  41. ↑ Strauss, Joe (October 31, 2013). "Series ends with Miller remaining idle". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved November 2, 2013.
  42. 1 2 Eddy, Matt (October 28, 2013). "Puig, Fernández lead an impressive group". Baseball America. Retrieved November 4, 2013.
  43. ↑ "Historic win for Cuban José Fernández". Baseball Writers' Association of America. November 11, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  44. ↑ "Cards ignite late as Miller shuts out Blue Jays". MLB.com. June 7, 2014. Retrieved June 7, 2014.
  45. ↑ Schoenfield, David (March 20, 2016). "Diamondbacks gave up a lot for Shelby Miller, but he just might be worth it". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
  46. 1 2 "Braves acquire pitchers Shelby Miller, Tyrell Jenkins from Cardinals for outfielder Jason Heyward, pitcher Jordan Walden". Major League Baseball. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
  47. ↑ "Cardinals sink Kershaw again, head to another NLCS". ESPN.com. Associated Press. October 8, 2014. Retrieved September 14, 2016.
  48. ↑ Hummel, Rick (October 15, 2014). "Defensive lapses doom Cards again". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved September 14, 2016.
  49. ↑ Bowman, Mark; Zolecki, Todd (May 5, 2015). "Miller, Johnson lead Braves over Phillies". MLB.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  50. ↑ Stephenson, Craig (May 17, 2015). "Atlanta Braves' Shelby Miller loses no-hitter with 2 outs in 9th, beats Miami Marlins 6–0". The Birmingham News. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  51. 1 2 Bowman, Mark (July 6, 2015). "Miller left 'speechless' by first All-Star nod: Righty excited to represent Braves in Midsummer Classic". MLB.com. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  52. ↑ Bowman, Mark; Suss, Nick (October 4, 2015). "Miller blanks Cards to halt winless skid". MLB.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  53. ↑ Dillard, Zach (October 4, 2015). "Braves' Miller snaps 24-game winless streak in final start of 2015". Fox Sports. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  54. ↑ Piecoro, Nick (January 14, 2016). "Shelby Miller hopes his luck changes with Diamondbacks". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  55. ↑ Bowman, Mark (October 4, 2015). "After 24 winless starts, Miller victorious". MLB.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  56. ↑ Mittler, Doug (September 27, 2015). "Shelby Miller's terrible luck, by the numbers". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  57. ↑ Stephenson, Craig (October 4, 2015). "Atlanta Braves' Shelby Miller records first win since May in 6–0 victory over St. Louis Cardinals". The Birmingham News. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  58. ↑ Bowman, Mark (December 26, 2015). "Braves charted new course in 2015". MLB.com. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
  59. ↑ "Shelby Miller traded to Diamondbacks". ESPN. December 9, 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  60. ↑ Benjamin, Josh (July 14, 2016). "Has Shelby Miller Hit Rock Bottom". Forbes. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
  61. ↑ "Diamondbacks pitcher Shelby Miller settling in with new team". ESPN.com. Associated Press. February 21, 2016. Retrieved February 21, 2016.
  62. ↑ "Dave Stewart says Shelby Miller feeling pressure to live up to trade". ESPN.com. May 2, 2016. Retrieved June 20, 2016.
  63. ↑ "Shelby Miller earns win in return from DL". ESPN.com. June 20, 2016. Retrieved June 20, 2016.
  64. ↑ "Arizona Diamondbacks option struggling pitcher Shelby Miller to minors". ESPN.com. July 14, 2016. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
  65. ↑ Eymer, Rick (August 31, 2016). "Back in bigs, Miller gets back to what worked". MLB.com. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
  66. ↑ Sullivan, Jeff (May 14, 2013). "Shelby Miller: It only takes two pitches to become an ace". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
  67. 1 2 3 "Stats: Shelby MIller". Baseball America. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
  68. ↑ Oliveira, Denise (November 29, 2013). "Cardinals Pitcher Joins a New Team". The New York Times. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
  69. ↑ Fraley, Gerry (July 11, 2011). "Fraley: Top prospect's parents skip Futures Game to pay respect to Shannon Stone". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  70. ↑ "Our Proposal". Retrieved May 24, 2014.
  71. ↑ Langosch, Jenifer (March 14, 2013). "Good pals Kelly, Miller still competing for rotation". MLB.com. Retrieved September 23, 2013.
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