If there’s one game Mason Miller should circle on his calendar, it’s the San Diego Padres vs. Los Angeles Dodgers matchup on August 15, which will be his first experience facing a team the Padres have a deep rivalry with. This will be the first clash between the two teams after the trade deadline, which dramatically reshaped San Diego‘s roster.
And it’s likely the pitcher is already eager to step onto the Dodger Stadium mound, having gone from being “untouchable” to being acquired by the Padres in a blockbuster trade. The deal sent Miller and starter JP Sears to San Diego, while the Athletics received Leo De Vries, the number three prospect in baseball, along with three other young pitchers.
The message within the Padres about the Dodgers
“They told me right away, obviously, we don’t like those guys (the Dodgers) a whole lot,” Miller said during an appearance this week on Foul Territory. “I haven’t really had a rivalry to that extent. … Not a rivalry to the sense of the Padres and the Dodgers. I’m excited to experience that.
“Definitely going to be a lot of eye-opening experiences going forward, just with playing in front of all these fans and playing in these big rivalry games that mean so much.”
The Dodgers would have preferred not to face Miller this season. The pitcher, with a fastball reaching up to 104 mph, was a coveted asset for teams like the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, and New York Yankees.
Read the full article here
