Arizona Diamondbacks One of 20 Teams Pursuing Shelby Miller

The Arizona Diamondbacks are one of many teams looking at Shelby Miller.

The Arizona Diamondbacks were denied by Johnny Cueto and while General Manager Dave Stewart, President of Baseball Operations Tony La Russa and the rest of the front office are not done trying to woo Cueto to Arizona, the D-backs are looking at other options.

Knowing that is not likely that they will be able to sign Cueto after he rejected a six- year $120 million dollar deal that was on the table, it is being reported by Jon Heyman of CBS Sports that the Snakes are one of 20 teams currently trying to make a deal for Braves starter Shelby Miller.

To say Miller’s market is hot at the moment is an understatement: his value is off the charts and the D-backs have a lot of work to do if they are going to bring the young and talented right-hander to Chase Field.

Miller went 6-17 last season and yet even before the Winter Meetings commerce this month in Nashville, Miller is generating record interest.

This is another example of why a pitcher’s win-loss record means nothing in today’s game. Miller’s teammates hurt him more than any other pitcher in 2015, and he finished with a 3.02 ERA.

As a result the Braves asking price is very high and it is going to take a lot to seal the deal. The Braves have all the leverage against teams that really want him and Atlanta will take advantage of that.

My Thoughts:

As they did with Cueto, I want to see the Diamondbacks continue to aggressively pursue all options both on the deep free agent pitching market and in the trade market. As deep as the free agent market and trade market is this winter for starters, I don’t know if Miller is the best option for the D-backs.

However, there are pros and cons.

First, Miller is only 25 years old and is still three years away from free agency. Stewart and the rest of the front office have always prioritized controllable starters and Miller certainly fits in that category.

Despite his deciding win loss record, Miller actually had a great season on the mound in 2015. He complied a 3.02 ERA and lead the Braves staff for most of the season. His stuff and velocity can not be passed up and that is why so many teams including the Yankees, and Marlins have expressed interest.

The asking price for pitching isn’t going down and with where Miller is at in his career, the Braves can be as aggressive as they want with trade proposals. The Braves also gave up Jason Heyward to get Miller which will only drive the asking price up even more.

Jordan Zimmerman has already gotten $110 million from the Detroit Tigers, and just yesterday David Price signed with the Boston Red Sox for $217 million. If that is any indication, the D-backs are going to have to give up a lot in a trade to get Miller.

Next: Arizona Diamondbacks Free Agent Target: Doug Fister

Dave Stewart and Tony La Russa have already stated clearly that they don’t want to mortgage the farm system and after what happened in the Kevin Towers era, that is probably a good idea. With that in mind, the Braves are asking for a lot.

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reported yesterday that the Braves asked for A.J. Pollock and top pitching prospect Aaron Blair in return for Miller and the D-backs said no as they should have.

Their are other options and if Atlanta’s asking price is going to be that high, I would pass on Miller no matter how talented he is.