Report: First-rounder Miller agrees to terms
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LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers and first-round Draft pick Bobby Miller reached agreement on a bonus of $2.2 million on Friday, MLB.com’s Jim Callis reported. The club has not announced an agreement.
Miller, who confirmed the agreement on social media, is a right-handed pitcher from the University of Louisville. He was taken with the 29th overall pick last week in the MLB Draft. The assigned value for the pick was $2,424,600.
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“We expect him to race through the Minor Leagues,” vice president of amateur scouting Billy Gasparino said last week. “We expect him to be a fast riser, given his talent level, makeup and past performance.”
Miller, 21, relies on a pair of fastballs in the upper 90s -- two- and four-seamers -- and is one of the hardest right-handed throwers in this class. He’s 6-foot-5, 220 pounds and was drafted out of high school in the 38th round of the 2017 Draft by the Orioles but suffered a knee injury a week before the Draft and didn’t sign.
Before this season was suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Miller had a 2.31 ERA with 34 strikeouts across 23 1/3 innings in his four starts. That included a career-high 12 strikeouts in a win against Valparaiso on Feb. 22.
Miller, who grew up a Cubs fan in suburban Chicago, said last week that if he had to compare his pitching style and release mechanics to another MLB pitcher, it would be Justin Verlander, but he said his favorite pitcher to watch now is Walker Buehler, a potential future Dodgers teammate.
“He’s so electric on the mound, and that’s how I try to be,” Miller said. “His competitiveness, something I take big pride in, being the biggest competitor on the field. There’s absolutely no doubt that he is the biggest competitor on the field when he’s on the mound. And the way he’s not a big guy and the way he makes himself look so intimidating on the mound is something I really love to watch. And his stuff is just way more than advanced.”