Biography
Mason James Miller (born August 24, 1998) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2023. He was selected for the 2024 MLB All-Star Game.
Career
Miller played for Bethel Park High School in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, while being homeschooled, and played college baseball at Waynesburg University for four years until he graduated. He then played for Gardner-Webb University for his fifth year as a graduate student. As a sophomore at Waynesburg, he was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.
The Oakland Athletics selected Miller in the third round of the 2021 Major League Baseball draft. He made his professional debut that year with the Arizona Complex League Athletics. In 2022, Miller pitched in only six games between the ACL Athletics, Lansing Lugnuts and Las Vegas Aviators. After the season, he played in the Arizona Fall League.
Miller began the 2023 season with the Double-A Midland RockHounds, starting one game for the team before being moved up to Triple-A Las Vegas. After one start in Triple-A, on April 18, 2023, with 11 strikeouts over 5 perfect innings, the Athletics announced that Miller would be promoted to the major leagues for the first time. Miller made his debut a day later, in a game against the Chicago Cubs. Miller pitched 41⁄3 innings, allowing two runs on four hits, a walk, and five strikeouts. He also became the 10th starting pitcher since the debut of Statcast to throw 15 pitches above 100 miles per hour (160 km/h). After a May 8 start against the Kansas City Royals, it was reported that Miller was dealing with elbow tightness. He was later diagnosed with a mild sprain of the ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing elbow and promptly shut down from throwing. On June 30, he was transferred to the 60-day injured list. On September 6, Miller was activated from the injured list, with manager Mark Kotsay noting that Miller would be slated for a relief role.
In an effort to maintain Miller's health, the A's announced that Miller would be a reliever during the 2024 season. Beginning the season as the team's closer, Miller earned his first career save in a 4–3 win at Texas on April 9. Miller was named MLB Reliever of the Month for April 2024 after earning 8 saves in 8 opportunities and 28 total strikeouts.
On July 7, 2024, Miller was named as a reserve player in the 2024 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.
On September 26, 2024, Miller became the last pitcher to throw a pitch at the Oakland Coliseum in a major league game.
Personal life
Miller is an Eagle Scout.