Top Phillies prospect Aidan Miller sidelined for two more months in injury crusher

No. 1 Phillies prospect Aidan Miller will have to wait awhile longer to make his return to the field.

The shortstop will undergo a procedure on his back on Friday, which will keep him out for six-to-eight more weeks.

He’s been dealing with back issues since February and has not played in a game yet this year. He was diagnosed with discogenic pain and facet inflammation and will undergo the procedure in hopes of remedying the issue, the team said Wednesday.

Aidan Miller at spring training in 2024. Diamond Images/Getty Images

Miller is the 15th-best prospect in the league, according to MLB Pipeline.

The 21-year-old began rehabbing at the Phillies complex in Clearwater, Fla, and was pain-free for a while, but he began to feel discomfort again as he ramped up baseball activities.

“It’s supposed to fix the issue,” Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia. “We’ve been very close numerous times where we’ve been close to him getting out there and taking the next step. He just has not been able to quite get to that point.”

The lower back issues started at the tail end of the 2025 season when Miller burst onto the scene, ascending MLB’s prospect rankings while stealing 22 bases with an .825 OPS.

It was not until the last week of the season that the pain became unbearable. 

Miller rehabbed in the offseason and was feeling better, but before spring training, the pain resurfaced, and he did not appear in a single Grapefruit League game. 

Aidan Miller at Phillies photo day. Getty Images

Miller could have had a chance to make an impact in the MLB this season, as the Phillies struggled early in the season, and infielder Alex Bohm also struggled individually.

Now, Miller might not be back until at least August and will probably have to start in the minor leagues again. 

“I’d say it’s hard. If he doesn’t start playing until Aug. 1, that’d be very difficult,” Dombrowski said of Miller potentially getting to the majors this year. “But I can’t say, because if he comes back in six weeks and tears the cover off the ball, you never can tell.

But that’s not really even the top of our mind at this point. It’s just, ‘Let’s get him healthy.’”