Shelby Miller deal bringing mixed returns to Atlanta Braves in 2016 season
Jul 19, 2016, 12:52 PM | Updated: Jul 20, 2016, 9:29 am
(AP Photos)
(AP Photos)
The overwhelming consensus after the Arizona Diamondbacks traded former No. 1 overall MLB Draft selection Dansby Swanson, Aaron Blair and Ender Inciarte to the Atlanta Braves for Shelby Miller was a win for Atlanta.
While trades are never decided less than 100 games into the first season of the deal, this trade has brought mixed results to the Braves despite the unanimous approval.
The crowned jewel of the deal, Swanson, has been as advertised thus far in the minors.
Prior to Tuesday’s action, Swanson is hitting .287 in his 84 games, including a .272 average with seven home runs and 35 RBI for the Double-A Mississippi Braves. He’s coming off a performance Monday that saw him drive in a career-high four runs.
Swanson leads the loaded developmental system for the Braves, ranked No. 1 Tuesday by ESPN’s Keith Law.
The other two players, however, have struggled immensely for the MLB club.
Inciarte, the most MLB-ready of the three, has followed up his .303 average in 2015 for Arizona by hitting only .235 with one home run and 11 RBI as of Tuesday. The Gold Glove-caliber outfielder has done his part fielding-wise though, marking a higher .982 fielding percentage in center field for Atlanta than his .979 mark in center for the 2015 D-backs.
The 25-year-old has had two trips to the disabled list because of a hamstring issue.
Despite the lows for Inciarte, the heralded pitching prospect Blair has had the worst struggles of the two for Atlanta. His debut MLB season has been a nightmare, going winless in his 11 starts and allowing 45 earned runs in 50.2 innings.
Coming off giving up eight earned runs to the New York Mets in late June, Blair was sent down to Triple-A Gwinnett. The 24-year-old still hasn’t been able to get it going there. In three starts, Blair has allowed seven, three and six earned runs. This is surprising considering Blair’s success last season for the D-backs Triple-A affiliate the Reno Aces, going 7-2 with a 3.16 ERA.
Miller, of course, had the most value in the deal of all the players and has been the biggest disappointment of the four. He was sent down to Reno last week after going 2-9 with a 7.14 ERA to start the 2016 season. He makes his debut for the Aces Tuesday night.
