Rangers Spring Training Preview: Brad Miller
InsidetheRangers.com previews every player on the Texas Rangers 40-man roster heading into Spring Training in Surprise, Arizona.
IF Brad Miller
In 2022: Miller batted .212/.270/.320/.598 in 81 games. He scored 20 runs, had 71 total bases, three doubles, seven home runs and 32 RBI. He walked 18 times and struck out 70 times.
He spent most of his season at different positions, playing 27 games at third base, 28 games in left field and three games in right field. He also spent 22 at designated hitter.
But he also dealt with several injured list stints, with the final one — a right hip strain on Sept. 9 — putting him on the 60-Day injured list and ending his season.
This was the third straight season in which Miller’s batting average fell. With St. Louis in 2020, he hit .232. With the Philadelphia Phillies in 2021, he hit .227. His .212 batting average in 2022 was the second-worst of his career, after the .201 he hit with Tampa Bay in 2017. He’s a long way from being the productive, 30-home run hitter he was in 2016.
Contract Status: Miller is signed through 2023 and will earn $4 million.
In Surprise: Assuming Miller is healthy, he will be in competition for a roster spot. But it’s possible he could also be one of the final cuts. He is certainly talented enough to play multiple positions and has the experience to be the type of player who only has to start once or twice a week. Then the question becomes whether or not he can make the kind of impact the Rangers need from that type of player, especially at the plate. There is plenty of competition for left field, for designated hitter and for a super-utility type of player. Miller is one of them. But so are younger, cheaper players like Ezequiel Duran and Josh Smith. Miller must show that he can stay healthy, that he can get back to being a productive hitter and that he's a better option than the younger players. If he can, he'll make the team. If he can't, let’s just say eating the $4 million on the final year of his deal would be the worst thing the Rangers do in 2023. His job, unlike other vets, is most certainly on the line.
2023 Texas Rangers 40-Man Spring Training Previews:
Joe Barlow | John King | Dane Dunning | Brett Martin | Jake Odorizzi | Yerry Rodriguez | Owen White | Cole Ragans | Andrew Heaney | Glenn Otto | Josh Sborz | Ricky Vanasco | Cole Winn | Nathan Eovaldi | Jon Gray | Jonathan Hernández | Spencer Howard | José Leclerc | Martín Pérez | Brock Burke | Jacob deGrom | Taylor Hearn | Jonah Heim | Sam Huff | Luisangel Acuña | Ezequiel Duran | Josh Jung | Bubba Thompson | Nathaniel Lowe | Jonathan Ornelas | Corey Seager | Marcus Semien | Josh Smith | Adolis García | Dustin Harris
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