Newly-signed Dodgers prospect shares heartwarming Opening Day note after feeling lost

Two seasons ago, Anderson Miller was on the cusp of the majors, having reached Triple-A in the Royals organization. He was selected to the Omaha Storm Chasers' roster, with a pathway to the bigs presumably right in front of him, given the state of KC's big-league depth chart

While Miller socked 12 home runs, he played in just 69 games and posted a middling .710 OPS. Something wasn't clicking, and that incomplete profile resulted in the outfielder's release at the end of the season.

Unable to find a job in affiliated baseball, Miller instead turned to the (and we can't believe this is their real name, either) Wild Health Genomes, an independent team in Lexington, Kentucky and a member of the Atlantic League, otherwise known as MLB's strange partner league that serves as an experimental breeding ground for many new rules (read: robot umps).

To make the saga even stranger, the Genomes folded at the end of the season; Miller was a member of the team for their only year of existence.

That represented the outfielder's public low point until Wednesday, when he decided to share the full scope of his recent story. Because this season, things will be different. This season, Miller has the affirmation of the Los Angeles Dodgers organization.

Dodgers prospect Anderson Miller isn't 'embarrassed' to share his heartwarming story anymore

Last year, Miller nearly gave up, parenting for the first time, rarely sleeping, and driving hours back and forth to play ball with the Genomes daily and hold onto a shred of his career.

Just a few months ago, in the throes of the offseason, he (as he now feels comfortable sharing) "stacked groceries and scrubbed floors" to make ends meet.

Now? He gets to participate in the proud tradition of Dodger Baseball, with his ultimate dream once again within sight.

While a Miller comeback still faces long odds, he wouldn't be the only professional athlete to go from stacking groceries to professional glory. Who knows? Perhaps Miller can rise from the ashes and become the Dodgers' Kurt Warner. If there's any organization that knows how to tap into talent, it's the Dodgers -- who rub elbows with the Rams on a daily basis, too, for what it's worth.