Tagged: Juan Miranda

Miranda, Branyan & Allen Still Competing for Spot

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Photography: Jordan Megenhardt
By Greg Dillard
With less than three left in Spring Training, the position battle at first base still appears to be wide open for the D-backs.
The trio vying for playing time: Juan Miranda, Russell Branyan, and Brandon Allen all continue to hit well. 
It was Miranda who stood out in Wednesday afternoon’s game against the Angels. He received the start at first base, and took advantage of the opportunity. 
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Miranda launched a long two run home run to right field. That long ball was his third of the Spring. Miranda now owns a .294 batting average to go with a .618 slugging percentage. 
In his third plate appearance, Miranda rocketed a single back up the middle in the fifth. 
Miranda made it a three hit afternoon by hitting a leadoff single into right field to start the bottom of the eighth. 
It was a big offensive day for Miranda, who had cooled off a bit at the plate recently. 
“He’s had a couple crappy games,” manager Kirk Gibson said. “He came back and played well, looking good at the plate. He’s pretty competitive.”
Branyan entered the Spring as a non-roster invitee, but has proven himself to be a threat at the plate. The left-handed hitter has collected 16 hits, nine RBI, three home runs and an outstanding .794 slugging percentage.  
Against the Angels, Branyan pinch hit in the bottom of the fifth, and continued his hot hitting by lacing a single into right field.
After advancing to second base on a wild pitch, he would then score on Chris Young’s single.
As camp progresses, Branyan continues to make a statement for inclusion on the roster.
“He’s had a good spring,” General Manager Kevin Towers said. “He hasn’t done anything to hurt himself. He’s performed very well. He’s certainly probably been one of our better offensive players we’ve had this Spring.”
Allen has been off to a strong start at the plate this Spring as well, batting .343 with four doubles. 

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D-backs Deal S. Allen to Yankees for 1B Miranda

 

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Photo by Chris Trotman/Getty Images

While rumors swirled about big trades in the works, the D-backs made a less notable move Thursday, dealing minor league pitcher Scottie Allen to the New York Yankees for first baseman Juan Miranda.

 

Miranda, a native of Cuba, signed with the Yankees as an amateur free agent in 2006. He debuted in American pro ball in 2007, splitting games between high-A Tampa and Double-A Trenton. He has spent parts of the last three seasons in the Major Leagues — including 33 games with the Yankees in 2010 — while playing the majority of his games at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre.

 

In 423 minor league games, Miranda posted a .281/.367/.478 line, hitting 62 homers 195 walks and 357 strikeouts.

 

Allen was an 11th round pick of the D-backs in the 2009 Draft and spent the 2010 season as part of a pretty solid South Bend rotation. There, he started 16 games with a 4.73 ERA in 78 innings, with 79 strikeouts and 22 walks. Allen did not crack Kevin Goldstein’s top 20 D-backs prospects on the recently released Baseball Prospectus list.

 

One thing the D-backs have a lot of in their system is mid-level right-handed pitching, and first basemen are another thing they have in spades. So this is a surplus-for-surplus trade from the D-backs perspective, with the local team receiving the guy who could play in the big leagues today if need be.