Aidan Miller called his Major League Baseball draft experience a painfully exciting and memorable experience.

“It was the best night of my life and probably the most stressful,” the 21-year-old said. “I’m glad I’ll never have to go through it again.”

Miller was the Phillies’ first-round pick in the 2023 MLB draft. He was projected much higher than the 27th overall pick but a broken hamate bone in his hand during his senior season at J.W. Mitchell High School in New Port Richey, Florida, created concerns.

The Phillies added to the chaos by never having any pre-draft conversations with Miller. So, they added to his memorable night more than two years ago by selecting him.

“It was crazy,” Miller recalled. “There were a lot of talks with my agent and my family, dropping as far as I did and not talking to the Phillies pre-draft. It was a surprise when they called to say they drafted me. Being so close to their [spring training] facility, about 30 minutes from my home, I know so much about the organization.”

The Phillies learned a lot this season about Miller, who started off slowly with Double-A Reading before finding his groove in late July. He slashed .361/.487/.613 with 15 doubles, 15 stolen bases and 25 walks in his last 31 games with the Fightin’ Phils before being promoted to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

All he’s done in his first seven IronPigs games is collect eight hits, walk eight times, get hit by a pitch once and steal six bases.

Not bad for a guy who reached the legal drinking age just two months ago.

“When things were going bad, especially the first couple of months weren’t great for me,” Miller said, “it was hard not to look up at the scoreboard and see your stats. But I used it as motivation knowing there were still four, five months left in the season. I could turn my season around in one month.”

Miller was slashing .217/.336/.350 on July 26 in Reading before turning those scoreboard numbers in his favor.

He didn’t make any major mechanical adjustments. He didn’t employ a team of psychologists or spend many a sleepless nights in front of a computer studying video. The Florida native just returned to his hitting roots.

“I was just being more aggressive, especially early in counts,” Miller said. “I was going up there and swinging at pitches I usually swing at and not being passive. I was pulling the trigger on breaking balls early in the count that were to just get over [the plate] instead of taking them for strikes.”

Miller has maintained that approach since his Triple-A promotion. His base-running philosophy was the one constant throughout this season. He has a combined 58 stolen bases in 73 attempts, a significant jump from the 23 he had in 2024, his first full professional season.

That, too, was by design.

“I worked on my speed in spring training and the offseason to turn it on during games,” he said. “To get on first then steal second, I can help the team score a run. My biggest [goal] is to be as consistent as I can with my all-around game, hitting, baserunning, defense.

“This year, there have been a lot of ups and downs, but to end the year strong and consistent the back half of the year was a big goal of mine,” he said. “I did not set a lot of specific goals, just go out and be myself.”

Miller also has adjusted well to a new clubhouse full of players with major league experience as well as other top prospects including Andrew Painter and Justin Crawford.

The 6-foot-1, 205-pounder has made the most of the opportunities he’s earned in his short time in an organization that appeared to have no interest in him as a teenager. He’s now the Phillies’ No. 2 prospect behind Painter.

“What I see is a great kid based on conversations I’ve had with him,” IronPigs manager Anthony Contreras said. “He’s got a good head on his shoulders, a good work ethic. When talking through situations, you can tell his mind is working. He is a very coachable young man who has a very bright future. You get that sense right away the way he moves around the field.”

Philadelphia fans will relish the fact that his journey to the big leagues made a memorable stop on his way back from a series in Hartford, Connecticut.

“We stopped at a Wawa,” Miller recalled, “and [Reading] manager Al Pedrique came to me and asked if I’d rather play at 11 a.m. on Tuesday or 7 o’clock somewhere else. I said 7 o’clock somewhere else. It was pretty cool. It was unexpected. Usually you find out right after a game. It was a good surprise.”

There are no Wawas where Miller is going after the IronPigs’ season ends Sunday. He is one of eight Phillies minor leaguers headed to the Arizona Fall League in October. He’ll be joined by pitchers Eiberson Castellano, Jack Dallas, Daniel Harper, Tommy McCollum and Jaydenn Estanista, plus infielder Carson DeMartini and outfielder Dante Nori. They, along with Double-A Reading pitching coach Riley McCauley, will be part of the Surprise Saguaros.

DeMartini, 22, slashed .237/.340/.367 in (.707 OPS) in 119 games between high-A Jersey Shore and Double-A Reading with 45 stolen bases, 20 doubles, four triples, 10 home runs and 52 RBI.

Nori joined Reading on Sept. 9 after playing 120 games between low-A Clearwater and Jersey Shore. He slashed .262/.363/.381 with 63 runs, 16 doubles, 11 triples, four home runs, 43 RBI and 37 stolen bases. The 20-year-old hit .279 and stole 13 bases in 11 games with Jersey Shore. Nori is second among Phillies minor leaguers in hits, first in triples, first in walks and second in stolen bases.

Castellano, 24, missed two months this year with an injury while with Reading. The 2024 Paul Owens Award winner as the organization’s top pitcher was 4-2 with a 5.14 ERA in 20 games.

Dallas, 26, had a 3.54 ERA in 30 relief appearances for Reading. Harper, 26, has a 11.30 ERA in 14 games with Lehigh Valley, but six scoreless outings in Reading and a 2.08 ERA in four games with Clearwater. McCollum, 26, is 1-3 with 12 saves in 45 games for three teams this season, including Lehigh Valley. Estanista, 23, was 2-2 with a 4.84 ERA and six saves in 40 games between Jersey Shore and Reading.

The Arizona Fall League begins Oct. 6 and runs through Nov. 12.

Senior writer Tom Housenick can be reached at thousenick@mcall.com.