What you need to know about the Indians acquiring Andrew Miller from the Yankees
The Indians' big move that was completed
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3 min read
Just hours after reportedly locking down a deal to acquire Jonathan Lucroy from the Brewers (only to see that trade vetoed by Lucroy), the Indians struck again. This time making a deal for the left-handed reliever they desired by adding Andrew Miller from the Yankees in exchange for a prospect horde:
Today @yankees acquire OF Clint Frazier, LHP Justus Sheffield and RHPs Ben Heller and J.P. Feyereisen from Cleveland for LHP Andrew Miller.
— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) July 31, 2016
Miller, under contract through the 2018 season, is one of the best relievers in baseball. He entered Sunday with a 1.39 ERA and 11.00 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Clint Frazier and Justus Sheffield, meanwhile, were just ranked the no. 1 and no. 5 prospects in the Indians system, according to MLB.com.
Here's everything you need to know about this trade.
1. Miller shores up Indians' weakness
With Lucroy reportedly out of the fold, the Indians' top remaining priority besides catcher was boosting their bullpen -- particularly the left-handed portion of it. Cleveland had a few capable right-handed options in tow -- namely Cody Allen, Bryan Shaw, and Dan Otero -- but lacked a dynamic southpaw. Miller, equipped with a devastating fastball-slider combination, changes the equation. In addition to becoming the Indians' best reliever, Miller gives the Indians a high-leverage trump card that few teams can match -- presuming, anyway, that Terry Francona keeps Allen entrenched in the ninth. Add in the cascading effect -- the idea that Miller's addition will better allow Francona to achieve optimal usage of his other relievers -- and this trade could pay more dividends than we realize or can quantify.
2. Indians are now favorites to win AL
Even if you think Miller's potential impact is overstated, you have to agree to this much: the Indians are loaded. They already had one of the best rotations and defenses in baseball, and now they've added an impact-level talent their middling bullpen. The lineup -- one that could still get Michael Brantley back in time for the postseason -- needs some help, particularly behind the plate, but this is a good team. Sizing a pennant winner before October almost never works out well for anyone involved, but right now the Indians appear to be the team to beat in the AL.
3. Cleveland is in good shape beyond '16
This isn't your normal deadline rental. That's the other caveat of this trade for Miller. His contract stretches through the 2018 season, which means the Indians could well have two postseason runs in them before he leave town for richer pastures. That's about as much as you can ask for when you're a small-budget team. And if things go left before next deadline? Then the Indians could always recoup value through trades of their own.
4. Yankees are insanely high on Frazier
Scouts will warn you about throwing comparisons on prospects, but that doesn't stop anyone from doing it -- even, evidently, when you're a Yankees executive and the comparison is to Mike Trout:
frazier is the key piece for yanks in deal. some in the org see him as "the next mike trout."
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 31, 2016
That's absurd, however, Frazier is a high-quality prospect. He boasts plus power potential and above-average speed, and has the arm to play right field if needed. Frazier has also improved his strikeout rate throughout his minor-league career, all while continuing to walk. Those are good signs -- particularly from a player who more than held his own in Double-A as a 21-year-old. There's All-Star potential here ... just don't compare him to the best player in baseball.
5. Sheffield isn't a bad piece, either
No, Sheffield isn't related to Gary, but he's a quality prospect for reasons other than his surname. A smallish southpaw, Sheffield has the athleticism and arm strength to repeat his delivery and touch the mid-90s with his fastball. His breaking ball figures to be his out pitch at the big-league level, yet his changeup shows enough promise that it's fair to project it developing into a weapon against right-handed hitters. Add it all together, and Sheffield could become a nifty mid-rotation starter in due time.
6. Yankees' rebuild continues to go well
Between the Aroldis Chapman trade and now this, the Yankees have added a lot of young talent to their system in the past week. Here's a breakdown of the last seven days for New York:
Presuming Brian Cashman isn't done yet, and decides to trade Carlos Beltran and others, the Yankees could well exit the deadline with the most-improved farm system in baseball. That's not the fancy title Yankees fans desire, but it's better than nothing.
