While the Philadelphia Phillies are battling it out in the NL East, the organization's minor league system has been exciting to follow early in the 2025 season.
There has been an influx of interesting prospects to follow as the minor league campaign ramps up. With some young players such as Andrew Painter set to make their MLB debut sometime this summer, hype for the farm system has been at a level this franchise hasn't experienced in years.
Another potential young-star-in-the-making is shortstop Aidan Miller. He has been one of the most talked about prospects in the Phillies' system since being drafted in 2023. The 20-year-old started the season with Double-A Reading after finishing the final five games of his 2024 season there.
The season started as a bit of a struggle for Miller despite homering in his first game of the year. However, over the last two weeks, he has begun to turn the corner.
Phillies' No. 2 prospect Aidan Miller is finally turning a corner in Double-A
As the No. 2 prospect in the system, there is some pressure on Miller to perform. After putting together a 2-for-5 night in the season opener, the young prospect garnered just two more hits in his next seven games.
Through April 15, Miller established a slash line of just .118/.211/.294 with two singles and one home run. What was even more concerning was his strikeout propensity. In those eight games, Miller posted a 39.5 percent strikeout rate with an unimpressive10.5 percent walk rate.
To Miller's credit, he is nearly three years younger than the average Double-A player, so some struggles may not be a cause for concern. Since April 16, things have begun to look better for the highly touted prospect.
In 13 games since April 15, Miller's slash line looks significantly better, sitting at .261/.393/.304. The batting average is definitely improving and the on-base percentage is about where the Phillies would want it to be, however, the slugging percentage is still a bit of a concern. There is still plenty of time for that aspect of his game to blossom.
The reason for that belief is that his at-bats are getting much better. He is making more contact and striking out significantly less than he did during the first two weeks of the season.
In his last 13 games, Miller has cut his strikeout rate down to 16.1 percent and has increased his walk rate to an equal 16.1 percent.
The Fightin Phils shortstop also currently holds a 16-game on-base streak which ranks at the top of the Eastern League.
Miller also struggled when he made the jump from Single-A Clearwater to High-A Jersey Shore last season. Showing immense maturity, Miller took those difficulties and turned it into success, eventually ending up at Double-A Reading to close out the 2024 stanza. There is still a lot of time left on the 2025 schedule.
It is not surprising that a player of Miller's caliber is beginning to turn the corner after an early season road bump. He is simply too good to struggle for a prolonged amount of time when healthy. It will be interesting to see when Miller is ready to earn a promotion and face pitching at the next level.