Shelby Miller's Strong Spring Has him in D-backs Bullpen Mix

The veteran right-hander's stuff has been sharp in spring training as he vies for a spot on the opening day roster

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Shelby Miller during spring training workouts at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick on Feb. 18, 2025, in Scottsdale. / Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

When Shelby Miller signed a minor league contract with a non-roster invite to Diamondbacks Spring Training, there were a plethora of relievers vying for bullpen spots. Miller was just one of a number of pitchers that had a reasonable shot at an Opening Day spot on the roster.

No longer a starter, Miller has had some success in his career as a reliever, and his stuff appears to play up out of the bullpen. He spoke about his return to the team and his transition to reliever on the first day of full squad workouts, and was very candid about his long journey back.

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Now, with six days left to go before Opening Day, Miller's chances to make the roster have grown exponentially. Not only has he pitched well and looked sharp, but the attrition among the contenders have whittled down the competition.

Kendall Graveman has a back injury, and is likely to start the year on the Injured List. Drey Jameson was optioned to Triple-A Reno to continue his buildup back from Tommy John Surgery. Lefty Kyle Nelson was also optioned out.

The primary remaining competition for Miller is Bryce Jarvis, who has pitched well for the most part. But Jarvis still has minor league options, while Miller does not of course.

Miller has faced 20 batters so far in Cactus League games, and has yet to walk a batter while striking out seven. He's given up four hits and two runs in 5.1 innings for a 3.38 ERA with a 0.750 WHIP.

Miller's four-seam fastball has averaged 94.7 MPH, with a very healthy 17.9 Induced Vertical Break, or IVB. The Spin Rate of 2,428 and WHIFF rate of 31.8% are both above average as well. Miller has also been getting very high swing-and-miss rates with his sweeper and splitter. Simply put, the stuff has been sharp.

Miller said on Thursday, "I feel really good, the stuff's great, the body is feeling good. I think I'm in a pretty good place."

The right-hander gave a more detailed, positive self-assessment of where he is at stuff-wise.

"All my stuff is in a really good place. My splitter metrics are way better than they were last year. I changed the grip on that. I'm bringing back the sweeping slider. I still have the cutter, but I haven't thrown it much to lefties this year. And my fastball velocity has been better than it was last year starting out in camp.

"I expect big things for myself this year. Everything is analytical these days. On paper, on the computer, it's probably the best it's been since I can remember, so that's encouraging. Just the velocity and going out and throwing strikes is the main goal," Miller said.

This past Monday, Miller checked off an important box in a game against the Angels at Salt River Fields by going two full innings. The first inning went smooth, retiring the side in order with two strikeouts.

His second inning of work was tougher. He gave up a single and a stolen base, and balked that runner to third. He later scored on another base hit. But Miller bore down, striking out the last two batters of the inning to limit the damage.

Getting in the "up-down" and throwing 34 pitches was an important step in showing the team he is ready for the first week of the season. But it wasn't easy, as in his previous outings Miller had been so efficient that his pitch counts were not nearly that high. He'd thrown just 10, six, and nine pitches prior.

Speaking about the two-inning outing Miller said, "Oh, it was a grind. I had a long warmup and then threw 34 pitches. I was pretty sore that Tuesday, but I felt good [Wednesday and Thursday], so the bounce-back was good."

Miller knows that checking these boxes is important to carve out a role with the team. He said he expects to throw two innings on Saturday as well and then should be ready to go for the regular season.

It would be quite the comeback story if Miller is able to carve out a successful bullpen role for the Diamondbacks. With the way his stuff is trending, he might be able to do just that.