Shelby Miller put together a solid second half of his 2014 season, but Fantasy owners weren't especially impressed with his post-break 2.92 ERA or 0.99 WHIP. His activation rate in CBSSports.com leagues barely crept over 50 percent over the season's final weeks, so owners may not feel as if the Braves pulled off a coup in acquiring Miller as the main part of their haul in dealing away Jason Heyward and Jordan Walden to the Cardinals.
There's little doubt that Miller was a far better pitcher in the second half than in the first half, but skepticism over his future is warranted, especially now that he will spend it as a member of the Braves' rotation. As a flyball pitcher, Miller will be even more challenged to keep the ball in the park at Turner Field, which is home run-neutral. He has a career 1.0 HR/9 ratio, but that's only because he has had the luxury of making home starts at pitcher-friendly Busch Stadium, where he has compiled an 0.7 HR/9 ratio. Elsewhere, that mark has ballooned to 1.4 HR/9.
So, yes, Miller became a much better control pitcher down the stretch, throwing 66 percent of his pitches for strikes and walking 19 batters over 74 second-half innings. That won't be enough to make up for Miller's propensity for giving up the long ball. His best hope is to rediscover the ability to induce swings-and-misses, but that was not evident even during his better stretches last season.
Miller was no more than a streaming option for standard mixed league owners last season, and the change of scenery won't improve his status.