Wade Miley, who starts for the Houston Astros on Sunday Night Baseball against the Indians, played baseball at a very early age. When Wade was about 7, his father recalls being approached by an interested observer.
Wendell Miley had no background in baseball, having been raised milking Holsteins and fixing hauling rigs, like a lot of the folks in the farming community of Loranger, Louisiana. But he knew about the background of the man who had some thoughts about his son and sports -- "Mr. Les," as Wendell Miley still refers to him. Les Mulkey was the father of Kim Mulkey, a basketball star at Louisiana Tech who played in the Olympics before moving into coaching, and what Mr. Les told Wendell Miley was that his son had very unusual athletic ability, that the way he moved and threw stood out. Wade Miley was left-handed, but he still played shortstop because he could catch and throw better than his peers.
"Your son has a real gift," Mr. Les said. "Make sure you give him every opportunity to let that gift grow."
So this is what Wendell and Wanda Miley did, saving and spending money to facilitate his time in travel ball. Wade Miley would go on to star at Loranger High and Southeastern Louisiana University, and he was the 43rd pick in the 2008 draft by the Diamondbacks.
After posting ERAs of 5.37 and 5.61 in 2016 and 2017, for the Mariners and Orioles, his career outlook wasn't great. But in the fall of 2017, Miley worked with Chris Westcott, an accomplished amateur coach in Louisiana, and reduced the rotational movement in his delivery, and he focused on his cut fastball. In 2018, Miley posted a 2.57 ERA in 16 starts for the Brewers, before signing with the Astros for this season.
But his ties with Loranger will forever be deep. Jerseys from Miley's time in baseball, from high school to the big leagues, hang at Chris's Restaurant, in the town of about 7,200. Wendell Miley recently rearranged the frames to include an Astros jersey. And Loranger recently posted a sign seen by those entering the town: "WELCOME TO LORANGER, Home of WADE MILEY." About a decade ago, Wade Miley bought land and filled a plot of about 600 acres with a herd of beef cattle -- Angus, Herefords, Brahman and Tigerstriped -- on a farm run by his older brother Aaron.
Miley is off to a good start with the Astros this season, with a 3.58 ERA in 27⅔ innings over five games.
News from around the major leagues
Mike Golic is passionate in his belief that there is a last line that can be crossed by abusers of women and children, feelings that came out as he addressed the Tyreek Hill situation. For NFL teams, he wondered aloud, why would you have this player on your team?
Of course, this is a question that also needs to be asked by Major League Baseball teams. The collective work of front offices is smarter than ever, much more efficient than ever. Executives and analysts have figured out how to find and help pitchers through the study of spin rates. By identifying where hitters are most likely to hit the ball -- based on ball-strike counts, based on the pitcher on the mound, based on the tendencies of the batter in the box -- and have improved positioning.
They have learned to weigh past performance more properly against expected future production, and in doing this, they have negotiated better contracts. Hundreds of thousands of hours are expended every year in front offices finding the best plans for managers in structuring lineups to create favorable matchups.
With all of that in mind: Shouldn't all of these really smart, progressive front offices have the confidence that they can find a way to operate without hiring a player found to have abused or terrorized others, particularly children and partners?
Many executives already have taken that step, of course. When the Toronto Blue Jays offered reliever Roberto Osuna for trade as he neared the end of his extensive suspension under the baseball's domestic violence policy, a lot of teams passed because they couldn't stomach the notion of taking on a player with that kind of history.
As it should be. Those prosecuted for crimes of abuse are entitled to go about their lives after serving the penalties prescribed by the law, but they are not entitled to work under the umbrella of Major League Baseball -- any more than disbarred lawyers or suspended doctors are assured that one day, they'll regain their previous standing as professionals.
Sadly, some front offices will continue to pursue players with histories of domestic violence simply as an exercise in finding undervalued assets. But an acquisition like this in this day and age should be viewed as a direct indicator of an organization's character and values, and deep insecurity. Because what a front office is telling the world is that without that particular player, ugly history and all, the club's evaluators and staffers and players are not good enough to find a way to win.
It's a perspective antithetical to this enlightened age of baseball.
• One hundred and eighty-two days have passed since the end of the 2018 World Series, and since Dallas Keuchel and Craig Kimbrel became free agents, and they remain unsigned. Because both players turned down qualifying offers from the Astros and Red Sox, respectively, they are tied to draft-pick compensation -- unless they wait until after the 2019 draft, which is just five weeks away.
It's possible that Keuchel and/or Kimbrel will sign between now and the draft, but some evaluators believe that some teams will become more attracted to them once they are freed from the draft-pick compensation anchor. The same evaluators believe, conversely, that the closer that teams get to the draft, the less likely they are to be willing to surrender a pick or the slot dollars attached to the pick, after weeks of planning for the draft.
"At some point, do the dollars make sense in signing (Keuchel or Kimbrel?)" asked one evaluator. "Yes, of course. But the fact that 30 teams have passed on these guys tells you that the asking prices are too high (in the minds of club executives), and the reality is that teams are focused on the draft right now."
The most acute interest in Kimbrel seems to be in the NL East, baseball's steel-cage match. The Nationals, Braves, Phillies and Mets all have bullpen needs, and all four clubs have had varying degrees of contact with Kimbrel. And for all four teams, signing Kimbrel would also mean preventing him from signing with rivals, in a division race that figures to go down to the wire.
• Madison Bumgarner is in the midst of an incredibly important year for he and the Giants, because he'll be eligible for free agency at season's end and could be the most coveted piece in the trade market this summer. So far, he is allaying the concerns over the quality of his fastball that emerged last year, with improved performance with that pitch, but hitters are doing more damage against his off-speed stuff. He seems to be a pitcher who, like Clayton Kershaw, is going through a transition in adapting to changing velocity and repertoire. Bumgarner has a 4.30 ERA in six starts, with 37 hits and five homers allowed in 37 innings, and an xFIP of 3.70.
Here's how other players who might become possible trade targets are performing:
Aaron Sanchez, Blue Jays: As Toronto progresses through its rebuilding, it makes sense to flip Sanchez for younger, controllable pieces, and Sanchez has a 2.32 ERA in six starts.
Marcus Stroman, Blue Jays: The big story in Toronto on Friday night was the debut of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., but Stroman started and dominated again. He has a 1.43 ERA, and opponents have just a .534 OPS against him.
Matthew Boyd, Tigers: Detroit's rebuild is progressing well and it might be that the Tigers will fend off any overtures for the left-hander, who won't be eligible for free agency until after the 2022 season. But Boyd is throwing very well, with just two homers and 23 hits allowed in 31⅓ innings.
Baseball Tonight podcast
Friday: Hall of Fame president Jeff Idelson has great stories about Hall of Famers, current and future -- Ichiro Suzuki, Ken Griffey Jr., Tony Gwynn, Hank Aaron, etc. -- and he discusses his decision to retire; Karl Ravech, about Guerrero's debut and the first family of baseball; Jessica Mendoza, on the pitching advances of the Houston Astros.
Thursday: David Schoenfield on the lengthy home run trot of Rhys Hoskins, and a budding Padres star; Sarah Langs brings the numbers and weighs in on the question of the greatest lefty ever; the Power 10.
Wednesday: A deep dive with Andrew McCutchen on some of baseball's unwritten rules, the Tim Anderson suspension and retaliation; Dodgers manager Dave Roberts on the improvement of the L.A. offense, and Cody Bellinger; Boog Sciambi about the Phillies' anger; Paul Hembekides sparks a fight over the best lefty ever.
Tuesday: Bob Nightengale and Keith Law on the Bryce Harper ejection and Jake Arrieta 's pointed words; Sarah Langs brings the numbers.
Monday: Terry Francona hosts a visit of his office memorabilia and tells stories; Tim Kurkjian on the remarkable Max Fried; and Todd Radom's weekly cap talk and quiz.