The Hidden Gem in the A's Mason Miller Trade with the Padres

While the A's traded away another fan favorite, the return they got should help them as early as next season

Sep 6, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; San Diego Padres pitcher Mason Miller (22) celebrates after turning an inning-ending double play in the 8th inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

The Athletics and San Diego Padres made arguably the biggest deal of the MLB Trade Deadline, when the A's sent over Mason Miller and JP Sears, while the Padres included the No. 3 prospect in baseball as part of the return.

Most of the analysis of the deal over the past month or so has been centered around MIller and that top prospect, Leo De Vries, and even to a degree Eduarniel Nuñez, who made his A's debut immediately.

De Vries has since made it to Double-A Midland where he has started to really take off. In 16 games with the RockHounds, De Vries is batting .262 with a .351 OBP and a pair of home runs as an 18-year-old. He's essentially a high school senior holding his own against Double-A pitchers, which is part of the reason why he's ranked so highly on prospect lists.

Braden Nett's inclusion called a "coup"

Feb 23, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; San Diego Padres pitcher Braden Nett (96) pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the first inning at Camelback Ranch-Glendale. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

The second-biggest piece of the trade that headed to the A's in this deal was Braden Nett, who is now ranked as the Athletics' No. 5 prospect according to MLB Pipeline. In a recent piece on the disappointing teams to watch out for in 2026, Ken Rosenthal noted that "other teams regarded their addition of Braden Nett in the Mason Miller trade as a coup."

That's certainly some high praise for the 23-year-old, who originally went un-drafted in 2022 and has turned himself into a borderline top-100 prospect.

In his start on September 3, Nett went 6 2/3 innings and struck out a career-high 11 batters. Since joining the RockHounds after the trade, Nett has made six starts (he's also starting on Wednesday night) and tallied a 1-2 record in 27 innings of work while sporting a 4.67 ERA.

Most of that damage came in a start at the end of August against Springfield, where he gave up five runs in five innings of work. Outside of that start, he's held a 3.00 ERA since the trade.

Nett has a high octane five-pitch arsenal

Nett is a starting pitcher that has been clocked at 99, but typically sits around 95-97 with his 60-grade fastball. Before the trade, he hadn't finished a season at any level with a walk rate below 13.2% heading into this year, though in Double-A in the Padres' system, he was sitting at 10.4%, so there were certainly strides being made.

Since the trade, those strides have continued, as Nett holds an 8.5% walk rate heading into Wednesday's start. This is all while holding his strikeout rate consistent year-over-year at 25.5%, even with the jump to the next level in his development.

Given that he has five offerings that grade out at 50 or above on the 20-80 scout scale, and that he can reach the upper 90s with that heater, it's easy to see why landing him in addition to De Vries is seen as a big deal by other clubs.

The Athletics have taken some steps forward with the arms in their rotation and the bullpen this season, with the debuts of Luis Morales and Jack Perkins—two top prospects in the A's system—and Nett figures to be part of the next wave of high-caliber arms that will take the A's to the next level in 2026.

The expectation for Nett next season will be that he'll begin the year in Triple-A, but he should also get a good look with the club during camp early next year. He seems like the type of guy that could be on the short list of players called upon early in 2026 if the team needs a boost in the rotation.