Miller is the 260th former Northwoods League player to debut in MLB
Rochester, Minn. – Former Lakeshore Chinook Owen Miller, made his Major League debut for the Cleveland Indians on Sunday, May 23, 2021. Miller is the 260th former Northwoods League player to reach the Major League level.
Miller, who played collegiately at Illinois State University, played for the Lakeshore Chinooks in 2016 and 2017. He was drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 3rd round of the 2018 MLB draft.
In 2016 with the Chinooks, Miller played in 68 games and hit .264 with two home runs, 10 doubles and four triples. He drove in 27 runs, scored 28 times, and stole six bases. During the 2017 season he appeared in 13 games and hit .365 with four doubles, two triples and two home runs. He drove in 10 runs, walked six times, and had 13 runs scored.
Miller began his professional career in 2018 with the Tri-City Dust Devils of the Short-Season A Northwest League. After 49 games with the Dust Devils, he was promoted to the Fort Wayne TinCaps of the Lo-A Midwest League. For the season he hit a combined .336 over 75 games. He drove in 33 runs and had four home runs, 19 doubles and three triples. He stole four bases and scored 40 times.
Miller was promoted for the 2019 season to the Amarillo Sod Poodles of the AA Texas League. He played the full season in Amarillo. Over 130 games he hit .290 with career-highs in home runs with 13 and doubles with 28. He also had two triples, drove in 68 and scored 76 times.
Owen was called up by the Indians on May 23 from the AAA Columbus Clippers. In 16 games with Columbus, he was hitting .406 with two home runs, five doubles and nine runs driven in. In his Major League debut against the Minnesota Twins, Miller started the game at designated hitter.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now entering its’ 28th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, 260 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and MLB Gold Glove finalist and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TOR). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.