Jordan Milbrath signs with Diamondbacks

Jordan Milbrath’s journey to the majors is taking him to Arizona as the 2010 Springfield graduate recently signed a contract with Diamondbacks.

Milbrath, a right-handed pitcher, will report to spring training in Scottsdale, Ariz., Feb. 16, after signing with Arizona on Jan. 22.

“I’m really excited,” said Milbrath.  “It’s a good opportunity and a good organization, and I feel that I can contribute to their club.”

After getting drafted as a junior at Augustana University in 2013, Milbrath has spent seven years with Cleveland Indians, Pittsburgh Pirates and Miami Marlins organizations.  Now as a first time free agent, Milbrath was able to pick his destination and is looking forward to playing with a team of his choice.

“There were a couple of teams that reached out this season that tried to sign me, but the Diamondbacks were the best fit for me.”

Milbrath has made it as high as AAA in both Cleveland and Miami, a level he hopes to start at with the Diamondbacks.  If he performs well enough, Milbrath’s dream of making it the big show could very well come true.

The hard-throwing righty relies mostly on a mid-90s fastball, mixing in a slider as his strikeout pitch and a change-up to keep batters off balance.

“I’m trying to develop more of a change up to throw more often so I can get deeper in counts,” said Milbrath of his evolving pitch arsenal.

Milbrath, who is the son of Dave and Lori Milbrath, of Springfield, and currently works as a financial advisor at Prairie Plans in Springfield, has always appreciated the support he has gotten from his hometown fans - the place where his baseball dream started.

“Everyone in Springfield is so supportive and I want to keep everyone involved,” said Milbrath.  “I feel that everyone is a part of this journey.”