Offseason update on top prospect Bobby Miller will excite Dodgers fans

Despite getting knocked around in the Arizona Fall League, Los Angeles Dodgers top prospect Bobby Miller is ready to burst onto the scene in 2022. The timing couldn’t be better when you consider the team’s pitching needs after what’s transpired since last May.

Dustin May is out until the middle of 2022 as he recovers from Tommy John surgery. Trevor Bauer probably won’t put on a Dodgers uniform again. Max Scherzer is gone. Clayton Kershaw might leave when the lockout is lifted. That leaves LA with Walker Buehler, Julio Urías, Tony Gonsolin and Andrew Heaney as their only capable starters right now.

While Miller won’t crack the Dodgers’ Opening Day roster, he’s perhaps primed for a breakout that could see him make his MLB debut later in the year.

In 2021, the right-hander made it to Double-A Tulsa, and logged a 4.82 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 14 strikeouts in three starts (9.1 innings). Before that promotion, he appeared in 14 games (11 starts) with High-A Great Lakes, where he maintained a 1.91 ERA and 0.87 WHIP with 56 strikeouts across 47 innings.

This offseason? He’s beefed up his frame and is throwing even harder — a good indication that he’s working to grab Double-A by the horns when the time comes.

Dodgers prospect Bobby Miller gained weight and is throwing gas.

Juan Toribio of MLB.com also noted that Miller “made a few tweaks to his delivery that have impacted the quality of his four-seam [fastball].”

Additionally, his lackluster showing in the AFL (9.90 ERA across five games) might be a bit misleading. Miller was focusing on incorporating a curveball into his arsenal, which had already consisted of a high-velocity fastball, wipeout slider and changeup.

Perhaps he used that time against tougher competition to refine his pitches after missing over a month of action late in the 2021 season due to an oblique injury. It was obvious, too, because the right-hander appeared in just four games, totaling 12 innings, after going down with the injury on July 23. His uncharacteristic three home runs and seven walks allowed across 10 AFL innings made it evident he was working his way back and trying out some new things.

Then came the offseason, where he worked on building muscle by adding 15 pounds to his 6-5, 220-pound frame, as well as a few MPH to his blazing fastball. Assuming the 2020 first-round pick is uninterrupted by injuries and burnishes his arsenal to kick off 2022, he could be on the MLB roster after the All-Star break.

As long as the Dodgers can weather the storm with their thin rotation until then, they could be looking at a shrewd plan to deepen the unit as the year progresses.

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