The Cards got their man, nearly two months after they got their other man - or kid, I should say. Shelby Miller, the first round pick and new life spring of the Cardinals farm system, inked a bonus of nearly $2.9 million scrilla on the eve of the signing deadline. The collective Cardinal Nation rejoices, here's why...

Three straight no-hitters. Mid-nineties fastball. "Already built like a 200-inning frontline starting pitcher."

Shelby Miller is the real deal, unlike how Justin Pope was the real deal before being traded to the Yankees for Sterling Hitchcock in '03. To put Shelby's $2.9 million bonus in perspective, it comes in just behind J.D. Drew's $3 million in 1998 and above Rick Ankiel's $2.5 million in '97 and Chad Hutchinson's $2.3 million in '98.

Perhaps the most highly touted pitching prospect coming into the Cards' system since Rick Ankiel, here's a bit of Mike Craven's scouting report at Prospect Insider:

Fastball: Typically clocked between 90 and 92, touching the mid-90s at times. Shows some natural sink and a decent movement.

Slider: The tighter of his two breaking balls, clocked in the 85-87 mph range and generally commanded better than his curve ball. Could ultimately be his best pitch.

Curve: Coming out of his hand at 72-76 mph, Miller's curve is what fools most prep batters. He piles up the strikeouts by setting hitters up with the velocity on his fastball, getting ahead and then flipping the curve somewhere near the plate.

Changeup: As with most prep arms, Miller's changeup is a work-in-progress, and since he doesn't need it to dominate in the high school ranks, his focus on the pitch between outings will be critical.

Mechanics/Delivery: Miller throws from a high arm slot, nearly straight over the top - not quite Joel Pineiro, but he's not a 3/4 slot guy, either. He creates decent plane on his pitches, particularly his fastball.

Here's a look at what Twitter is saying (sic'd):

DanManSTL: On a night when Shelby Miller eclipses Ank's draft contract record, Ricky homers FTW, Franklin closes, and Carpenter goes RAWR! Love it!

Don't make Carp angry. You wouldn't like him when he's angry.

MilliGFunk: Can I just say it doesn't suck to graduate H.S. and make 3MIL/year playing pro ball? #stlcards (Shelby Miller)

To set the record straight, the $2.9 million is a bonus, not an annual salary. Shelby will still be making the minimum until he's up for arbitration or signed long-term.

FishSTL: Why did we give Shelby Miller close to 3 million? Its so stupid for rookies to get so much money.

Fair critique. The reality is Shelby hasn't proven anything yet, and the Cards went above slot to sign him. I'd rather commit nearly $3 million to him than give a $1.4 million bonus to another Pete Kozma, though.

jdshaw30: Another good thing about the Cards getting Shelby Miller signed: MU won't have to face him at A&M

SEMO won't have to either. Oh, wait... we wouldn't have anyways.

spencergriffin: congrats to @jluhnow on the shelby miller signing. makes me a happy man and takes a little sting out of wallace and mort's exit.

Little chocolate donuts make me a happy man, but this is much more satisfying.

realslimfish: New Cardinal signee Shelby Miller had 150k's in 77 Innings pitched last year in HS. impressive, Have to wonder about the competition tho

Domination is domination. High school pitchers are harder to project, of course, but the consensus has been Shelby has good objective stuff, not just subjective numbers.

JTontheCards: congrats 2 Cardinals 4 ponying up the $$ (2.875 M) to sign 1st rd pick Shelby Miller...future ace

4 realz.

untreatable: Shelby Miller Signs With Arizona Cardinals Photos: The Arizona Cardinals were able to sign first round draft pic..

Wait a minute... that's not right...

C70: Very nice to see Shelby Miller sign for less than $3 million. Good to have that kind of talent in the system. #stlcardinals

C70, I'm with you here.

aharder23: I love the Shelby Miller signing. Cardinals are doing everything possible right now, to satisfy their fan base. Now, sign Smoltz & I'm happy

I echo that last comment. The Cards did well with the Shelby signing, keeping it under $3 million, but they shouldn't be done yet. John Smoltz is still looming, and he's officially a free agent now. Maybe beating up the Dodgers will convince him his World Series hopes truly lie with the Redbirds...