Adam Miller

Adam Miller - Right-handed Pitcher
Age: 23 Height: 6'4" Weight: 200 Bats: Right Throws: Right

	W	L	ERA	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	BB9	K9	WHIP
2007 Buffalo	5	4	4.82	19	11	0	65.3	68	35	4	21	68	2.89	9.37	1.36
Career	32	24	3.61	98	88	0	461	431	185	28	137	455	2.67	8.88	1.23

History: Miller was drafted out of high school (TX) in the 1st round of the 2003 Draft, and had a commitment to play for the University of Arizona before signing with the Indians. Miller was unbelievable the final two months of the 2006 season at Akron as he posted a 0.29 ERA in July and a 1.59 ERA in August, and then followed that up in spring training last year by pitching 14 scoreless innings in five games. Miller's 15 wins at Akron in 2006 set a franchise record, passing Paul Byrd's 1992 franchise record of 14 wins in a season. His 161 strikeouts also crushed the single-season team record of 149, which was set by Travis Driskill in 1996. He was named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Year in 2006, and was also the Indians Minor League Pitcher of the Year (Bob Feller Award) in 2004 and 2006.

Strengths & Opportunities: Miller is an extremely confident pitcher, and aggressively attacks every hitter. His four-seam plus-plus fastball consistently clocks in at around 96-97 MPH and it has topped out as high as 101 MPH, and he also throws a two-seam fastball that bottoms out well and allows him to better change speeds on his fastball. His best pitch is his plus-plus devastating power slider that he throws in the upper 80s that has excellent tilt and shows great late break. He also throws a changeup, which has become a very good weapon for him and shows good depth. When he is on with the pitch, the development of Miller's changeup has made his fastball and slider almost un-hittable.

Miller made a fine adjustment to pitching at the Triple-A level last year, and became more confident with his secondary pitches by throwing 2-0 changeups and 3-1 sliders. Miller has been able to harness his emotions and adrenaline on a consistent basis in order to allow better command of his fastball and secondary pitches when behind in the count. He has very good command of his pitches, and has a clean delivery. Miller displays quick arm action in his windup, which makes it tough to pick up the baseball in his hand. His secondary pitches are crisp and he consistently keeps them down in the zone.

Miller took a huge leap as a pitcher in 2006, as he was on a strict 85 pitch count in order to keep him healthy and fresh after an arm injury in 2005. The reduced pitch count actually helped force Miller to learn how to be more efficient as a pitcher as he began to use all three of his pitches effectively and his maturity as a pitcher began to show as he depended more on location with those three pitches rather than just sheer velocity. He evolved into a pitcher, rather than just a thrower. He also met with Roger Clemens in the spring of 2006 as Clemens came to Winter Haven and sat down with Miller to personally talk about his routine and provided some invaluable insight on pitching.

Miller was scratched from a scheduled start in May with a slight strain on the last digit of the middle finger on his pitching hand, an injury commonly found among rock climbers. It is believed the injury was a result of all the torque he puts on his middle finger when he pitches, so this could be something to monitor going forward. The Indians put him on the disabled list and he was out of action for 45 days as a precautionary move. The injury was bad timing for Miller, as had he not suffered the finger injury it is very possible he could have been the one called up in early June to take Jeremy Sowers' spot in the Cleveland starting rotation when Sowers was sent down (Jason Stanford got the nod instead).

Miller took the setback well, and actually showed some signs of maturity when he initially experienced pain with the injured finger as instead of trying to pitch through it like a lot of kids do, he told the Buffalo coaching staff. This was good to see, as two years ago he threw through elbow problems in spring training where he ended up straining the ligaments in his right elbow which shelved him for the first few months of the 2005 season and he did not make his first start until June 21st. That injury ultimately set Miller back almost a whole year in his development.

The Indians caught a big break in that the finger injury was not serious, and the Indians were extremely conservative with Miller's progression back and followed the recommendations and protocols of hand specialist Dr. Tom Graham. After returning to the rotation in late June from the finger injury, Miller was shutdown for a month because of inflammation in his pitching elbow. Miller had been battered around the park in his first three starts after returning to the rotation by giving up 18 runs on 21 hits in only 9.1 innings pitched. Miller's elbow injury was different from the one he suffered in 2005 as it was not in the same area, nor was it considered to be related to the finger injury he suffered earlier in the year.

When Miller initially came back from the finger injury, the Indians had him pitch out of the bullpen to get him back into game shape. Also, when he came back from the elbow issues in late-August he finished the year in the bullpen. Overall, he totaled eight appearances in the bullpen, which provided a small sample size of his ability to handle pitching out of the bullpen and he handled it well. The Indians acknowledged last year that Miller could become a viable bullpen option for the major league team in a middle or late relief role in 2008, but even if Miller does pitch out of the Indians bullpen at some point in 2008 it would only be a temporary solution as they still envision him long-term as a starter.

Reportedly, Miller is 100% healthy and ready to go in 2008. He was sent to the Arizona Fall League (AFL) this offseason to get more work in and to give him the opportunity to pitch some more innings to where he can increase his workload to 180 to 200 innings. Going forward, Miller needs to continue to develop a feel for pitching to go with his power approach. His changeup still needs a little more work. Most importantly, Miller needs to show he is durable enough to stay a starter and can be counted on as the impact pitcher many believe he will be at the major league level.

Last year, Sports Illustrated magazine named Miller to their "Dream Rotation" which is an up-and-coming dream five-man rotation compiled by 11 high-ranking major-league executives. Prospects with one season or less of major league service time were eligible for the list, and Miller was 4th in the rotation which also included Boston's Daisuke Matsuzaka, Philadelphia's Cole Hamels, New York Yankees' Phillip Hughes, and San Francisco's Tim Lincecum. Miller is the only one in that dream rotation who has yet to appear in the majors.

The Outlook: Miller is healthy and the elbow injury he suffered ended up not being as serious as some feared it would be back in July. It was a rough year for Miller as he endured two long stints on the disabled list for two separate injuries, but when all is said and done he is still the prize of the Indians system. With Indians ace left-hander C.C. Sabathia's looming free agency, the Indians need a front of the rotation starter they can turn to in the event they are unable to re-sign Sabathia. The 23-year old Texan fire-baller could that pitcher, which is why it is important that Miller see significant time in Cleveland over the course of the 2008 season. Miller was recently rostered this offseason, his option clock is now ticking, and he is a legit starting pitching alternative the Indians can turn to if a need arises this season. While Miller likely starts the year in Buffalo, he could be a dark horse for a spot in the Cleveland bullpen out of spring training, and will see some action in Cleveland at some point this year.

Video: Miller on the mound.

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