New Arizona Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen continues to explore ways to improve the team, including exploring trade options for starting pitcher Shelby Miller.
Continue for updates.
D-backs Open to Trading Miller
Wednesday, Dec. 7
According to Nick Piecoro of AZCentral Sports, the Diamondbacks have been discussing trading starting pitchers during the winter meetings, with Miller and Patrick Corbin being the most talked-about trade chips from Arizona’s side.
Piecoro did note the Diamondbacks still have a high asking price for their pitchers, so any potential deal would have to be considered a long shot.
The Diamondbacks acquired Miller last year in a five-player deal that sent Ender Inciarte, Dansby Swanson and Aaron Blair to the Atlanta Braves.
The move was part of Arizona’s hopes for contention in 2016 after signing Zack Greinke. Things never came together for the team, with Miller completely falling apart. He had a 6.15 ERA with 127 hits allowed and 70 strikeouts in 101 innings over 20 starts.
Things got so bad for Miller that the team demoted him to Triple-A in July, hoping to fix his mechanics. It did seem to work, at least a little bit, with a 3.98 ERA in a small sample size of 31.2 innings, though he still allowed 40 hits during that span.
Hazen has been aggressive trying to patch things up, acquiring Taijuan Walker and Ketel Marte from the Seattle Mariners last month. The Diamondbacks do have a wealth of intriguing starters to deal, including Miller, Walker, Greinke, Corbin, Robbie Ray and Archie Bradley.
Even though things were disastrous for Miller and Arizona last year, this team is capable of turning things around quickly because of the depth in its rotation. It also hopes to get a full season from A.J. Pollock and continued development from Jake Lamb and Brandon Drury.
Miller’s value is at its absolute lowest right now, so trying to deal him only makes sense if the Diamondbacks think he’s a lost cause. Since he’s just 26 years old and one year removed from being an All-Star, there’s reason to be optimistic that 2016 was an outlier in his career.
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