Bobby Miller looked nearly unhittable through his first four MLB starts with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but he then ran into some trouble over the next four, allowing 20 earned runs in 21 innings pitched during that span.
Miller then turned in a solid outing against the New York Mets, giving up just one run, but that only came in 4.2 innings. On Saturday, Miller was tasked with his toughest challenge yet against the Texas Rangers lineup that ranks as one of the best in baseball this season.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the Rangers would be a test for Miller, and he delivered, completing six innings while giving up three runs to earn a quality start. After the game, Miller said he was pleased with his performance overall, via SportsNet LA:
“I definitely feel better about it. This is one of the better lineups I’ve ever faced in my life. I definitely get excited to face a lineup like that. When you have a lead like that, you kind of just stay in attack mode the whole game. Location felt a little bit better today. There’s a couple pitches I wish I could take back, but other than that I was really happy about it. No walks today and got through a complete outing, six innings.”
Miller’s biggest mistake pitch came on a 1-0 count to Marcus Semien to lead off the bottom half of the first inning. Semien blasted a home run to left-center field, but the rookie right-hander then settled in, preventing any more runs until Nathaniel Lowe tripled in the fifth inning.
Miller gave credit to Semien but said he was able to move past the mistake easily because of his trust in the Dodgers’ offense:
“He’s a really good hitter and he’s a really good fastball hitter. He’s got really quick hands. It’s only the first batter of the game, so I’m not worried about that too much. It’s only one run, and when you’ve got an offense like we do, one run isn’t much.”
Overall on the season, Miller is now 6-1 with a 4.28 ERA with a 1.19 WHIP and 53 strikeouts across 54.2 innings as he seems locked into the Dodgers rotation for the rest of the season.
Bobby Miller dealt with right knee discomfort
Another positive sign in Miller’s start against the Rangers is he had no lingering effects from the injury he dealt with while facing the Mets.
Miller only threw 77 pitches as he had discomfort in his knee during his last time out. The Dodgers did not express any long-term concern over the injury, which seems to have been proven correct.
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