Former Clemson Tigers Baseball Star Throws Scoreless Inning in MLB Debut

Ryan Miller, who played baseball for the Clemson Tigers, got his first taste of Major League Baseball on Tuesday night.

Clemson hats and gloves line the dugout before practice at Doug Kingsmore Stadium in Clemson Friday. / Sarah Sheridan / staff

Former Clemson Tigers pitcher Ryan Miller started his Major League career on Tuesday as he was promoted by the Los Angeles Angels and made his first career relief appearance against the Detroit Tigers.

Miller’s promotion was part of a series of moves, that included the Angels moving pitcher Matt Moore to the 15-day injured list and moving outfielder Mike Trout to the 60-day injured list.

He joined the Angels in Detroit, where they were facing the Tigers. The right-hander entered the contest in the seventh inning and retired all three hitters he faced, which include two strikeouts.

His promotion was the culmination of nearly seven years of work in the minor leagues after Miller was selected in the sixth round of the 2018 MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks.

He spent 2018 and 2019 in the Diamondbacks’ minor-league system, followed by a year off due to the COVID-19 shutdown of the minors in 2020.

Following that, he played with Southern Illinois in the Frontier League as he lost his foothold in the minor leagues.

He signed a minor-league deal with the New York Yankees in 2022 and he pitched for High-A Hudson Valley, as he went 2-3 with a 5.75 ERA in 25 games with 50 strikeouts and 18 walks in 36 innings. He also made an appearance with Sioux Falls in independent baseball’s American Association.

In 2023 he signed with the Boston Red Sox and spent the season with Portland in Double-A. With the Sea Dogs he went 5-3 with a 4.03 ERA, with 67 strikeouts and 19 walks in 60.1 innings.  

He carried that progress into 2024 with the Angels, as he was 5-1 with a 3.03 ERA in 34 games with the Bees, as the 28-year-old struck out 61 and walked 14 in 62.1 innings. In the minor leagues he strikes out 9.0 per nine innings while giving up 2.8 walks per nine innings.

After a standout career at State College of Florida, he joined Clemson in 2017 and battled injuries before he had a standout year in 2018 to set up his draft selection. He went 7-1 with a 2.51 ERA (third-best in the ACC) in 26 relief appearances over 71.2 innings. Opponents hit .234 against him and he was given the Stowe Award, given to the team’s most valuable pitcher.

In the NCAA Tournament, he was a Clemson Regional All-Tournament selection after he pitched 8.0 innings over two relief appearances, allowing three hits and two walks with six strikeouts.

Against Top 25 teams he went 1-1 with a 1.93 ERA with 18 strikeouts and four walks in 23.1 innings.