SPRINGFIELD, OH – Jake Miller (Chester, NY; Valparaiso) has been drafted in the 2022 Major League Baseball Draft by the Detroit Tigers in the Eighth Round! Miller was the 237th pick in this year’s draft.
Jake Miller was the ace on last year’s record-breaking Champion City Kings team. Miller made the most starts with ten, with two additional appearances in relief. Miller had a 3.00 ERA in fifty-seven innings, striking out 71 batters while allowing just 23 walks. In those ten starts and two relief appearances, Miller went 2-3 with one complete game thrown. Miller got the start in Champion City’s first ever playoff game, where the Kings walked it off 10-9 over the Chillicothe Paints.
This season, Miller was in the Coastal Plain League with the Peninsula Pilots. Making four starts, Miller struck out 22 batters, walked eight, and had an ERA of 2.65 in 20.1 innings pitched.
With Miller being drafted, it’s the highest pick for a Valparaiso Beacon since 2010 according to Valparaiso’s Athletic Department. Also, Miller is the first pick this year out of the Missouri Valley Conference.
The Detroit Tigers farm system includes the Dominican Summer League and Florida Complex League Tigers in the Rookie level, the Single-A Lakeland Flying Tigers, the Advanced-A West Michigan Whitecaps in Comstock Park, the Double-A Erie SeaWolves, and the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens. The closest Miller gets to Springfield will be when the West Michigan Whitecaps visit Dayton, being members of the Eastern Division of the Midwest League.
The Champion City Kings are proud of all of the achievements Jake Miller has accomplished both in and outside of Springfield. Congratulations, Jake!