Atlanta Braves Trade Shelby Miller, Get To Know The New Braves
Braves Trade Miller for Inciarte, Swanson and Blair
Ken Rosenthal reports that the Braves traded Shelby Miller to the Diamondbacks
Sources: #DBacks agree to acquire Shelby Miller from #Braves, pending a review of medical records.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 9, 2015
Multiple sources report the Atlanta Braves received two of the Diamondbacks top ten prospects along with Ender Inciarte here’s the tweet by Nick Pierco of the Arizona Republic.
Hearing from multiple sources Ender Inciarte, Aaron Blair and Dansby Swanson are involved in the Shelby Miller deal.
— Nick Piecoro (@nickpiecoro) December 9, 2015
The Braves did extremely well in this trade.
Jun 24, 2015; Omaha, NE, USA; Vanderbilt Commodores shortstop Dansby Swanson (7) tries to field a ball during the game against the Virginia Cavaliers in game three of the College World Series Finals at TD Ameritrade Park. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
Dansby Swanson
Dansby Swanson was the Diamondbacks first round pick in June. Here’s a portion of Baseball America’s draft report on Swanson ($).
. . . as a sophomore (Swanson) helped lead the Commodores to their first-ever national championship.. . . After playing second base . . .(he) smoothly transitioned to shortstop . . .has the athleticism, range and hands necessary for the position. Whether he has a true plus arm remains the subject of some debate, but scouts project he’ll stay at shortstop . . .Swanson is a well-rounded hitter. He has a quick, loose swing that (producing) hard contact to all fields. He is a patient hitter who knows how to work a walk and has a sound two-strike approach. He has some pop in his bat,. . .but gears his swing more for hitting line drives. He is a plus runner and knows how to steal bases. Swanson earns praise for his makeup and work ethic.
Swanson is a native of Kennesaw Georgia and graduated from Marietta High School. MLB Pipeline listed Swanson as the Diamondback number 1 prospect. Their scouting report says, “Swanson is a technically sound hitter who fits at the top of his lineup with his on-base ability and speed. He showed as a junior that there might be Major League average power in his bat as well. His makeup is off the charts and universally praised by coaches and scouts.”
Swanson ranks as https://t.co/iVXpGn4mtH's 10th-best prospect and fourth-best SS prospect. Blair ranks as the game's 61st-best prospect
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) December 9, 2015
Dansby Swanson is 1st No. 1 overall pick traded as Minor Leaguer since Marlins dealt A-Gon (2000 top pick) in '03. pic.twitter.com/JJZiSqfKxr
— MLB Stats (@MLBStats) December 9, 2015
After signing this season Swanson will not be able to join the Braves until June, he was drafted this year and can’t be moved until after the draft next year.
Oops I forgot the rule changed in May. Sorry about that.
Braves Trade Trivia: Dansby Swanson's dad's name is Cooter. #TrueStory
— Kevin M. Calpin (@KevinCalpin) December 9, 2015
The Braves also snagged the Diamondbacks number three prospect right hander Aaron Blair.
On the next page, we look at who Blair is and will become…
Mar 1, 2015; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Aaron Blair (70) poses for a portrait during Photo Day at Salt River Fields. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Aaron Blair
Blair was the D’Backs second
round
pick (comp round #36) in 2013 and he moved up the system quickly reaching AA in 2014 and AAA early this year. He features a plus fastball sits in the low 90’s with good run and can can touch 95 mph.
As a compliment to that he uses a mid-80s changeup and a useful curveball that projects as a plus pitch. Blair works quickly and attacks hitters, pounding the zone and making them swing the bat.
With AA Mobile this year Bls3 air threw 83 1/3 innings striking out 64 and walking just 23 while posting a 2.70 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP.
The transition to the PCL and AAA Reno pushed up his ERA to 3.16 and his WHIP to 1.22, not unusual in the hitter friendly PCL. He did however continue to strike hitters out fanning 56 while walking 27 in his 77 IP.
Blair projects as a middle of the rotation arm. He will be 24 in May and as a seasoned college arm could well be in the rotation next year. One player who will be in Atlanta next year is Ender Inciarte.
Aug 26, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks right fielder Ender Inciarte (5) singles in the fifth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
Ender Inciarte
Unlike the other two parts of this trade Inciarte wasn’t hot prospect. The D’Backs signed him as an international free agent in 2008 at the age of 17. At that age it isn’t surprising he moved slowly through their system but at every level he’s consistently posted both a high OBO and BA. Inciarte does have a considerable R/L split.
| Split | G | PA | AB | H | HR | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| vs RHP | 217 | 718 | 673 | 208 | 10 | .309 | .346 | .422 | .768 |
| vs LHP | 124 | 290 | 269 | 67 | 0 | .249 | .288 | .297 | .586 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 12/8/2015.
I’m sre Kevin Seitzer will work with him to correct that but the Braves wanted him to play center field and he’s a good man for the job..
In 2014 Inciarte played 649 1/3 innings in CF with 15 DRS, a .903 RZR and a 13.7 UZR. Overall in his two seasons playing all over the D’Backs outfield he posted 52 DRS in 1972 1/3 innings.
Overall Inciarte’s been a 3 fWAR player over the last two years and looks to slot an outfield where he’ll be flanked by older, slower, and in one case less experienced players where his speed and experience will be badly needed.
That’s A Wrap
This deal looks a lot like the one the Cubs made with the Athletics when they sent Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hamel to the west coast for Billy McKinney (minors), Addison Russell, Dan Straily and cash. So all the Twitter Critters who were laughing at the Braves demanding too much for Miller should go order their plate of crow now.
The Braves cornered a Diamondbacks team that’s obviously all in for 2016 and wanted Miller badly. As a result they extracted a major haul of quality players for Shelby Miller and A ball relief pitcher Gabe Speier who never had a chance to unpack after being traded to the Braves as part of the Cameron Maybin deal.
The trade took everyone by surprise.
Dansby Swanson, Aaron Blair and Ender Inciarte is the core of the sort of deal I was expecting to see for Jose Fernandez, not Shelby Miller.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 9, 2015
Inciarte solves the center field issue until Mallex Smith is ready and now there is no need to rush him. Blair could well be as good as Miller in the end and ready to begin that journey this season. However Dansby Swanson is the crown jewel of this trade. The Georgia native gets to play for his home town team and at least begins to fill the void left by the departure of Andrelton Simmons for Sean Newcomb. It also answers the second base question.
At 5’9” and 150 pounds Ozhaino Albies is a little undersized for a shortstop in today’s game. He is however a nicely sized second baseman and with Swanson should create a sweet double play combination.
Next: Flowers in Atlanta in the Fall
Some are shocked at the price in prospects for Miller but they ignore the price of middle of the rotation arms in today’s game. Samardzija just got a five-year $90M deal and Mike Leake is looking for $85M over the same time. J.A. Happ is a back of the rotation arm and her got an AAV of $12M over three years and soft tossing erratic Marco Estrada got two years at $13M. Miller is inexpensive and under control for three years, the Braves were always going to get their price, if not now then at the deadline or next year.
While Miller was a popular player in Atlanta this trade unlike some others gives Braves fans something to look forward to. Let’s hope they can continue in this vein.