Salt River notes: Miller rolls onto fast track

It's certainly difficult to miss D-backs reliever Jared Miller. At 6-foot-7 and 240 pounds, the left-hander cuts an imposing presence anywhere in a ballpark.

Miller pitched in a manner befitting his hulking frame in 2016, climbing all the way from Class A Kane County to Triple-A Reno and making his organization take notice in the process. Now he's hoping to continue that progression with the Salt River Rafters in his first Arizona Fall League stint.

"I think my goal coming into the season was to just have fun," Miller said prior to Salt River's game Thursday against Mesa. "Obviously any player wants to put themselves on the radar at the big league level. I think just by doing my job and having fun, I was able to do that. [The D-backs] told me in the spring when they made me a reliever that if I put my head down and got to work, I was going to have a chance to really blossom this year, and that's what I did."

Taken out of Vanderbilt in the 11th round of the 2014 Draft, Miller has been a versatile arm during his three professional seasons. The southpaw started 26 of his first 30 career outings but moved to the bullpen exclusively this year and subsequently took off.

Miller didn't allow a run in nine outings for Kane County to start the year, earning a promotion to Class A Advanced Visalia in May. After posting a 1.88 mark in 12 appearances there, he got the bump to Double-A Mobile and later spent a month in Triple-A Reno. In 45 total games, Miller went 0-2 with five saves. He sported a 2.65 ERA and struck out 80 strikeouts in 61 1/3 innings while holding opponents to a .169 average.

"I think having a year under my belt as a starter, logging 140 innings or whatever I threw last year, really helped me to bounce back this year between outings," Miller said. "I really didn't ever feel tired or worn down out of the bullpen, which I attribute to our training staff and the knowledge I had from Vanderbilt, being able to make sure I'm ready and prepared between outings."

The former Commodore soaked up lessons at all of his stops, spending the most time with Mobile (19 appearances) but especially gleaning what he could from his five outings in Reno.

"From playing in every level, you appreciate guys who have success, especially at the Triple-A level with the travel and all that goes into it, the early flights," he said. "I was able to learn from so many different people this year just because I got to play with everybody in the organization. I got to see guys come down from the big league level. Just to see how badly they wanted to get back up to the big leagues just makes you hungrier."

Despite a whirlwind year with three in-season promotions and 45 total appearances, Miller's workload was actually 58 innings fewer than he tossed as a starter in 2015, giving him more in the tank for the AFL. In addition to pitching valuable innings, he's taking the same educational approach to the showcase circuit that he learned during his regular season, especially with fellow pitchers and new batterymates behind the plate.

"I'm definitely trying to pick everyone's brain a little, one by one," he said. "It's been really neat, especially [catcher and No. 14 Brewers prospect] Jacob Nottingham. He was in the Southern League this year, so I got to face him a couple times. Just getting to throw to the guys who have had the chance to face you is a really cool experience. They kind of get to tell you what they see, if you're tipping your pitches or what to throw when. It's been nice to work with these different catchers here."

Miller's first foray into the AFL, with Nottingham behind the plate, was a strong one. The Columbus, Ohio native struck out four while working around two hits in 1 2/3 innings in Salt River's season opener, a 7-7 tie with Peoria on Oct. 11. With more outings on the way, Miller sees the close to his season as a welcome extension of an already impressive year.

"It's just nice to see how your stuff stacks up against the best," he said. "Everyone has fun out here and it's obviously a great opportunity.

"I just want to leave here knowing that I treated every game the same, whether it was in low-A earlier in the year or in the Fall League. I'd love to leave here and obviously have the opportunity to go to big league camp, but that's not something I can control. I'm really just here to compete. At the end of the day, that's what I do best."

In brief

Vandy boys: Miller roomed in college with Dansby Swanson (MLB.com's No. 4 overall prospect) and Carson Fulmer (No. 57), both of whom made their Major League debuts this season after being selected with the first and eighth picks of the 2015 Draft, respectively. The fourth roommate in that talented Vanderbilt household was righty Adam Ravenelle, a fourth-round pick of the Tigers in 2014 who is also on Salt River's roster. Ravenelle made 10 appearances for Scottsdale in last year's AFL and started his 2016 tour on a good note, working a scoreless inning in the Rafters' opener.

Return of the Maverick: Brett Phillips is back for his second AFL stay as well, though he was limited in 2015 for a unique reason. Milwaukee's No. 7 prospect, Phillips played in seven Fall League contests for Surprise last year before leaving with USA Baseball to take part in the inaugural Premier12 tournament in Taiwan and Japan. The outfielder batted .346/.452/.538 in the AFL last year and helped the United States to a silver medal in Asia. He spent the 2016 season with Double-A Biloxi, batting .229/.332/.397 in 124 games.