Brad Miller

Teams pursued Miller out of an Orlando high school, but his signability pushed him to the 39th round. He started at shortstop for most of his first two years for Clemson, and spent the last two summers with USA Baseball's college national team. After failing to register an extra-base hit in the summer of 2009, he hit .441 last summer with four doubles and a home run. Miller kept hitting this spring, especially after returning from a broken finger. He led the Atlantic Coast Conference in batting (.431) and on-base percentage (.536), earning ACC player of the year honors despite an odd approach that evokes Craig Counsell. He holds his hands high to start his stance, and while he doesn't always get his hands into an ideal hitting position, he has excellent hand-eye coordination and keeps his bat in the strike zone a long time. He's been inconsistent defensively, including 31 errors as a sophomore, and has had inconsistent throwing mechanics. He has been steadier this spring but probably fits better at second base. He's a solid-average runner, if not a tick above-average, and has good baserunning instincts. He's a baseball rat with good makeup.