After it was all said and done, following the San Diego Padres’ questionable decision to have Mason Miller come out and pitch in the eighth and ninth innings, speculation arose that he was tipping his pitches.
For the Padres, who find themselves in a 2-0 hole against the Milwaukee Brewers, manager Craig Stammen begs to differ over his two-time All-Star closing pitcher being predictable.
Before the Padres were set to begin a team workout at Petco Park, a day before Game 3 of the NLDS, ESPN baseball reporter Alden Gonzalez wrote that Stammen said, “I think we’ve seen some of that from Mason, and it mostly happens in the appearances where he goes more than one inning.
“I think that’s definitely something strategy-wise that we were very comfortable with going into the game, but something going forward that we may have to adjust as the playoffs go.”
For Miller, he’s built a reputation as being one of the best closers in baseball, holding a 1.67 ERA and leading the National League in 38 saves last season.
In 66 games during the regular season, Miller threw 70 innings. In nine of them, he pitched above a single inning. In seven of those games, he didn’t give up a run.
Perhaps Stammen could be right that Miller wasn’t tipping his pitches. But Sunday night was the worst time for him to not be able to close out the game, as the Padres are on the verge of elimination.
While Miller was six of seven in save opportunities in September, his production trended downward, as he’s given up six runs, five earned, and has been hit nine times while giving up six walks.
Gonzalez reported that Stammen said Miller is still learning how to “keep the same adrenaline in one inning and bringing it to the second inning.”
During his ninth-inning meltdown on Sunday, Miller was in charge of preserving a 3-2 lead but wouldn’t be able to hold up his end of the bargain as he would give up two walks and would throw his 40th pitch of the outing by giving up a two-RBI single to Jackson Chourio to make it a 4-3 loss to the Brewers.
Aside from Stammen not believing Miller is tipping his pitches, Gonzalez reported that 12-year veteran catcher Gary Sanchez wasn’t aware if he was tipping pitches.
“I think even if he was and we were aware of it, hitting 104 is not easy by any means,” Sanchez told Gonzalez.
The Padres and Braves are set to play at 6:30 p.m. in Game 3 on Tuesday as Nick Pivetta will get the start for San Diego.
