Marlins had trade in place for Shelby Miller at deadline

The Marlins could have acquired prized Diamondbacks pitcher Shelby Miller at the trade deadline, according to a report from USA Today's Bob Nightengale.

The story, which focuses on Arizona "strongly considering" major front office changes states that chief baseball officer Tony La Russa and general manager Dave Stewart made Miller available at the trade deadline. Just seven months after he was acquired by the Diamondbacks, he was put on the open market, and Miami pounced on the opportunity, per a Marlins executive. The Marlins would have sent three starting pitchers in exchange for Miller, but the trade was halted by Diamondbacks ownership.

If completed, the trade would have transformed the Marlins rotation, and it's likely that the Cashner trade with the Padres would have never happened. It does beg the question, who were the supposed three starters involved in the deal? Recently promoted Double-AA righty Luis Castillo has showed some promise in low level games but was most certainly trade bait for Miller, as he was also involved in the deadline deal with the Padres, but was sent back to Miami when Colin Rea was issued back to San Diego due to an elbow injury. It's possible that the Diamondbacks may have targeted Jupiter Hammerheads starters such as 24-year-old right-hander Jeff Brigham, or 22-year-old righty Jorgan Cavanerio. Emerging Double-AA lefty Jarlin Garcia could have also been a target in Tony La Russa's sights.

The 25-year-old Miller holds a career 3.64 ERA with a 4.02 FIP, although he has struggled in his first year in Arizona, as he threw to a disastrous 2-9 record and a 7.14 ERA through the MLB All-Star break before being demoted on July 14th, spending 58 innings in the minor leagues. In Triple-AAA Reno, he showed some signs of improvement, earning a 5-1 record with a 3.52 ERA and a mighty rate of 9.98 strikeouts per nine innings.