Aidan Miller has missed the Philadelphia Phillies first two Spring Training games as he deals with a back injury.
Aidan Miller has a chance to make his MLB debut at some point during the 2026 season and become an impact player for the Philadelphia Phillies later this year. First, the team needs its top prospect to get healthy, as he’s now missed the team’s first two Grapefruit Games with an injury.
Rob Thomson said after Philadelphia’s 4-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday that the 21-year-old has been dealing with back soreness. Philly’s skipper doesn’t believe the injury happened on the field and said that Miller showed up to the ballpark earlier in the week, dealing with back pain.
All of this does seem concerning, but Thomson did stress that the team is just being careful with Miller, given the time of year and the early stage of spring training.
“We’re just being super cautious with him, obviously, this early in camp,” said Thomson. “He’s just getting treatment.”
The news of the injury actually came in the middle of Sunday’s spring training game, when Bryce Harper was being interviewed in the dugout. The Phillies’ star said, “I need him to get healthy, because he could help by the end, obviously.”
Feb 26, 2025; Dunedin, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Gabriel Rincones Jr. (85) hat sits in the dugout against the Toronto Blue Jays in the fifth inning during spring training at TD Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn ImagesHarper is correct. Miller has a chance to be a real difference maker for the Phillies later in the season. Across Double-A and Triple-A in 2025, Miller logged a .264/.392/.433 slash line, including 27 doubles and 14 home runs.
Thomson didn’t give a timetable for when Miller could be back on the field. It makes sense that the team wants to play it safe and not rush him back, but Miller is always missing valuable opportunities to face big-league-caliber pitching for the first time.
Plus, the plan was to have Miller move around the infield a little bit. Even though his primary position is shortstop, Thomson hoped to give him reps at third base, and possibly even a little bit at second base, too.
The Phillies can’t even think about starting that experiment until Miller is healthy and comfortable.
Hopefully, this isn’t an injury that will cause Philly’s top prospect to miss too many more games, and he appears in a Grapefruit game soon.
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