Wade Miley

Wade Allen Miley (born November 13, 1986) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously pitched in MLB for the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2011 to 2014, the Boston Red Sox in 2015, and the Seattle Mariners in 2016. He played college baseball at Southeastern Louisiana University.

Early life and career

Miley was born in Hammond, Louisiana, but grew up in Loranger, Louisiana, a town of only 6,100 residents and only 1,924 households. His father, Wendell, was a mechanic for 18 wheelers.^[1] Miley attended Loranger High School and Southeastern Louisiana University, where he played college baseball for the Southeastern Louisiana Lions baseball team.^[2]

Professional career

Miley pitching for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2013

Arizona Diamondbacks

The Arizona Diamondbacks selected Miley in the first round of the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft.^[3] Miley was called up to the majors for the first time on August 15, 2011,^[4] and would finish the season with a 4–2 record in eight games (seven starts).

Miley was named the National League (NL) Rookie of the Month for April 2012, pitching 3–0 with a 1.29 earned-run average (ERA), striking out 15 in 21 innings in two starts. Miley took a no-hitter into the 6th inning against Miami. He was also named a NL All-Star in his rookie season after beginning the 2012 season with a 9–5 record with a 3.04 ERA.^[5] Later that season on October 1, 2012, Miley pitched an immaculate inning in a game facing the Colorado Rockies. Miley won 16 games for the Diamondbacks in 29 starts in 2012. He also made 3 relief appearances. He had an ERA of 3.33 in  194 ²⁄₃ innings.^[6]

Miley lost to Bryce Harper for the National League Rookie of the Year in 2012.^[7]

On April 22, 2013, Miley hit his first career home run. Miley took a step back from his strong rookie season, managing just 10 wins despite pitching over 200 innings. In 2014, Miley would pitch to a 4.34 ERA with 183 strikeouts and a win-loss record of 8–12.^[8]

Boston Red Sox

Miley pitching for the Boston Red Sox in 2015

On December 12, 2014, the Diamondbacks traded Miley to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for pitchers Rubby De La Rosa and Allen Webster and infielder Raymel Flores.^[9] On February 5, 2015, Miley and the Red Sox agreed on a three-year $19.25 million contract extension.^[10] On April 21, 2015, Miley won his first game with the Red Sox, throwing  5 ²⁄₃ shutout innings versus the Tampa Bay Rays.^[11] For the season, Miley pitched to a 4.46 ERA in 32 starts, compiling an 11-11 record.

Seattle Mariners

On December 7, 2015, the Red Sox traded Miley and Jonathan Aro to the Seattle Mariners for Roenis Elías and Carson Smith.^[12] Miley struggled during his stint with Seattle, pitching to a 4.98 and a 7-8 record. In his last start for the team, he pitched seven scoreless innings against the Cubs.

Baltimore Orioles

On July 31, 2016, the Mariners traded Miley to the Baltimore Orioles for Ariel Miranda.^[13]

Miley struggled mightily in his first month with the Orioles. In August, he made six starts, pitching to a 7.14 ERA in 29 innings and had a 1-3 record. The Orioles went 2-4 in his starts. On September 18, Miley pitched four scoreless innings against the Tampa Bay Rays, before being pulled with a back injury. He returned his next start, taking a shutout into the 9th inning against his former team the Diamondbacks. He ended pitching 8 ²⁄₃ innings before allowing an RBI double. He struck out a career-high 11 batters in his best start in an Orioles uniform.

Pitching style

He throws four main pitches with an occasional fifth. The main four are four-seam fastball and two-seam fastballs (ranging from 88–92 miles per hour (142–148 km/h)), a slider (79–82 miles per hour (127–132 km/h)), and a changeup to right-handed hitters (80–81 miles per hour (129–130 km/h)). The least commonly thrown is a curveball in the mid-upper 70s, mostly against right-handers. His favored off-speed pitch with two strikes is the slider.^[14]

Personal life

Miley has been an avid hunter since the age of three. Growing up in Louisiana, Miley was a fan of the Atlanta Braves.^[1]

References

External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Wade Miley on Twitter