It’s been a tough couple of weeks for Wax Heaven favorite, Andrew Miller. Although he had finally begun showing signs of dominance a couple of months back, two rough starts in a row sent him packing out of Dolphin Stadium and to New Orleans, the home of the Triple-A Zephyrs.
Sadly, this is Andrew’s second time he’s been demoted due to poor performance. It happened in 2008 and he barely survived Spring Training this year to land as the fifth starter on the Florida Marlins. Since coming to the team last year, Andrew has won just 9 games in 34 starts.
Making matters even worse, the Marlins did everything they could to trade Andrew to the San Diego Padres right before the deadline. It was a shocking and sad day for this former “Super Prospect” whose 2007 rookie cards demanded premium prices among collectors and prospectors not too long ago.
As expected, Andrew’s Hobby presence is all but gone. His first year cards, including low-numbered parallels and certified autographs are selling for next to nothing. If you are a collector, do you give up on the kid who just turned 24 or hope and pray that he works out his stuff and becomes the dominant pitcher everyone expected him to be?
I think everyone reading Wax Heaven knows my decision.
Because of all the time/effort you’ve put into collecting this kid, you can’t give up on him now.. Although things are rough for him right now, he is still young.. Sometimes a guy does have to get traded to shake things up..
Did you decide to collect him because he was a future prospect? If you collected him because you like him as a person regardless of how he played, you gotta stick with him!
I don’t follow prospects. I began collecting him because it was my first “big” pull. By the time he was traded to Florida I had a small stash of his cards and have met him many times since. He’s an awesome guy, very fan friendly.
I find it best to just collect what you enjoy, good or bad price, because really it is the only way you’ll continue enjoying the hobby. My brother has a Johnathen Malone collection going because they became friends when he was in Jacksonville for double A ball. He has yet to reach the majors and his autos sell for 49 cents or less out of 08 premier, but its still fun for him to collect.
after reading the title “Andrew Millers downward spiral” I pictured a crackpipe GU card…
seriously though, see is so young and has the right mindset, he will be fine.
the player I collect didnt get a shot in the show until age 27, and then he fought injuries a few years after so really started at his 30s… and is HOF eligible next year.
so treat it as a way to buy all his stuff, I think this will be a positive thing
Was Andrew Miller ever hot in the collectin world? I don’t think so, he was
oddly enough the only rookie in a few early products so there was some
collectability, but past that he never got a second look. Just another
drop in the “once was great” bucket. Dominating in AAA isn’t the same
as being good in the bigs.
Kevin, what do you mean? He’s in literally every 2007 product almost.
Kevin really doesn’t kno what he’s talking about apparently.. Miller was definitely hyped back in ’07.. He was drafted 6th overall in ’06 and was the 1st from the draft to have his MLB debut in ’06.. And he didn’t “dominate in AAA” either – he’s actually played in the majors far more than in the minors, with a whole 4 starts at AAA.
Go Edgar Martinez!
What?
This would be easier to take if Andrew hadn’t shown us glimpses of a really talented guy. Although he has never raelly dominated a team for 9 innings in the majors he is still as good as most teams #5 guy in the rotation. I think he would be a perfect fit for the Marlins in a middle relief role. Their #4 and #5 guys have stuggled all season long so he would still get plenty of work without having the added pressure to start the game.
I think Detroit did him an injustice when they rushed him to the big leagues.
I was a fan of his when he pitched for UNC. Andrew still has plenty of time to get everything together and have a good career.
Mario, you can’t do any worse than my still-ongoing search for Brien Taylor cards. He was my first prospect (I live about 45 minutes away from his hometown at the time) and therefore, I feel like I have to complete that collection no matter what.
Tim, do you have the ’92 Topps certified auto?
@Ricky, I sure do, if you’re talking about the Topps Gold one. The Classic autos are what I need now
WOOOT WOOOT EDGAR!!!!!!!!!!!
thanks M’s.
and we WILL make the HOF, just maybe not the first try or 2. but you have to define a bad era with something positive.
……………………..
anyways mario dont worry about what a few people think about miller that havnt follew him. thats how you get all the good deals!
If you collect andrew because he’s a good guy and not for the prospect aspect, stock up on him now while he’s on the AAA DL. If he gets it together in AAA after the DL stint and gets back to the majors before sept callups, there might be an uptick in his cards.
I definitely know how you feel Mario. I also collect a highly touted prospect who never quite lived up to the expectations, but I still enjoy his cards, so I still collect him. I enjoy that the cards are a bit cheaper to collect now.