Yankees reliever Andrew Miller resurrected his career with the Red Sox when Theo Epstein was their general manager, so it wouldn't be surprising to see the Cubs president at the forefront of any trade talks for him before the Aug. 1 deadline.

Miller, the 6-foot-7 left-hander who can close or set up, went into the second half with a 1.37 ERA and 0.71 WHIP. He will be one of the more coveted relievers available if the Yankees unload, which depends on whether they can stay in the American League playoff hunt.

“The goal of our team is to play well enough that all the stuff goes away,” Miller said. “We're capable of that. We can shut down those rumors.”

Miller is in the second year of a four-year, $36 million deal, so he wouldn't come cheap. He basically got closer money when he signed with the Yankees and wound up with 36 saves in 2015.

But Miller had no problem returning to the setup role when they acquired Aroldis Chapman from the Reds.

Some closers' egos are too bloated for them to go back to their old roles, but Miller is old school and had no problem doing what was best for the Yankees.

“I really enjoyed (closing), and maybe that's something that doesn't come across,” he said. “I had a lot of fun closing, and I'm really proud of the way I pitched last year. Getting that last out is kind of a special feeling.

“At the same time, I was compensated by the Yankees to pitch out of the bullpen, and I told them that all along. I wanted to go to a place that was going to win over a place to just take a job as a closer. They have held up their end of the bargain. It's up to me — I'm an employee of theirs — to hold up my end of the bargain.”

He also knows “you don't have to be a closer anymore to be known as somebody who has impacted the game.

“We've seen guys become stars who have pitched the eighth inning,” Miller said and referred to the Royals' Wade Davis.

Papi time:David Ortiz had a nice farewell at the All-Star Game, and is getting the kind of send-off in his final season usually reserved for the likes of Cal Ripken Jr. and Derek Jeter.

It's hard to remember now that an anonymous source named Ortiz in a 2003 report for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. Imagine what Sammy Sosa must think of Big Papi's popularity.

MLB announced last week that Ortiz has the best-selling jersey in baseball.

So why is Ortiz so beloved?

“I'm a lovely person, man,” he said with a laugh. “I try to be sweet. I don't see that there's anything wrong with that. I'm sociable, and I have a relationship with (the media) where you guys know when we're faking and we're not.

“I am who I am. Some people like it. Some people don't. But I'd say more people like it than don't.”

Money talks: Reducing the schedule to 156 games or so to increase the number of off days (and theoretically lead to fewer injuries) may be part of discussions in talks over the collective bargaining agreement, which expires in December.

But Commissioner Rob Manfred said the players would have to pay a price, in terms of lower salaries, if players and owners were to agree on an adjustment.

“We've been playing this way for decades and still have had an increase in injuries,” Manfred said. “Can something be done? There are ways to produce some more off days in the schedule. Some of those have very significant economic ramifications that have to be shared by all the relevant parties. If you want to work less, usually you get paid less.”

But former player Tony Clark, executive director of the MLB players association, said playing fewer games would not mean players deserved less money because they would be playing at a higher level because of more rest.

Fewer games, Clark said, would “give the clubs and their players the best opportunity to play every day at a high level. … I don't agree that there would need to be a discussion about a loss of salary or a rollback of salaries (because) the value of every game goes up as well.”

Dodging the draft: Some small market teams would like an international draft, like the amateur draft, so the teams with more scouting resources wouldn't have a significant edge.

But it remains a pipe dream, for various reasons.

“The international draft will never happen,” agent Scott Boras predicted. “At least (MLB's) concept of the international draft. It's the Third World draft because the countries that are economically efficient would never allow an international draft — Japan or (South) Korea or Taiwan.”

In other words, players from the more developed countries would be treated like free agents while those from places like the Dominican Republic or Venezuela would be bound to whatever team drafted them.

psullivan@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @PWSullivan