The Phillies announced Wednesday that top infield prospect Aidan Miller underwent a “minimally invasive” back procedure called a “radiofrequency ablation of the facet joints.” He’s expected to be shut down for the next week and is currently projected to return to game action in six to eight weeks overall.
Miller has felt persistent back pain throughout the season and has yet to get into a game at any minor league level. Per the Phillies’ press release, he was diagnosed with discogenic pain and facet inflammation in his lumbar spine. Both Phillies medical personnel and third-party medical experts who were consulted for second opinions agreed that this was the best course of action to get him back on track.
Miller, 21, was the No. 27 overall pick back in 2023 and currently ranks as the game’s No. 61 prospect on Baseball America’s top-100 rankings. That ranking has slipped considerably, due both to his injury absence and big performances from rising prospects around the league. He entered the season ranked 14th on BA’s top 100.
Though he won’t turn 22 until next week, Miller has already reached the Triple-A level. He’s hit at every minor league stop, slashing .259/.382/.427 in a pitcher-friendly Double-A setting last year (134 wRC+) before destroying Triple-A pitchers in the final few games of the year. Miller appeared in eight games with Lehigh Valley last summer, tallied 37 plate appearances and hit .333/.514/.519. Between the Double-A and Triple-A levels last season, Miller tallied 14 homers and 59 steals while drawing a walk in 15.6% of his plate appearances and striking out at a 23.6% clip.
Had Miller been healthy, he’d likely have been a consideration for a call to the majors at this point — if he hadn’t already been promoted by now. He’s a natural shortstop but is blocked there by Trea Turner. Third baseman Alec Bohm has begun to turn things around after an awful start to the season, but Miller might have gotten a look over him or also-struggling second baseman Bryson Stott by now. Instead, it seems he’ll be sidelined into the season’s second half.
If today’s back procedure proves effective, Miller could still be a candidate for a call to the majors late in the season, though that’s hardly a foregone conclusion. He’s not eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft until December of 2027, so he wouldn’t be added to the 40-man roster this winter. If he struggles upon returning to the field or simply fails to force the issue, the Phils could keep him in the minors in order to preserve some offseason flexibility with regard to the 40-man roster.
Whether it’s this year or next, Miller doesn’t seem far from impacting the Phillies’ big league infield. Bohm and Stott have both been well below-average at the plate this year, though the former put together a big May. Bohm is a free agent at season’s end, too, which could create a natural opening for Miller at the hot corner.
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