There are a myriad of reasons to be impressed by Andrew Miller.
He’s 6-foot-7, which is quite a height for a human to grow to. He’s left-handed, which a rare trait. He can throw a ball at 94 mph consistency.
Beyond the basics, it has become apparent in recent years that he’s a pretty remarkable pitcher. You could argue he’s the third best reliever on the New York Yankees, but that would a ludicrously misleading way to present that information. Look at the top of the reliever leaderboards in statistics like K/9, ERA and WAR and you will find Miller’s name.
The impressive numbers he’s put up this season have gotten to the point where Jeff Sullivan of FanGraphs wrote a piece on Thursday entitled “My Favorite Andrew Miller Fact”. There are many to choose from.
My favorite Andrew Miller fact is a little different because it’s not something the southpaw leads baseball in. Instead, it’s something he’s 16th in the league in: three-pitch strikeouts.
Being 16th in the league in any category is quite impressive. Being that high up in a counting statistic that includes starters and relievers when you’ve pitched 20.2 innings is something else. Here’s what those top 16 pitchers* by three-pitch strikeouts looks like in table form:
| Pitcher | Innings | Three-Pitch K’s | 3-P K/9 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Max Scherzer | 73.1 | 26 | 3.19 |
| Stephen Strasburg | 67.2 | 19 | 2.53 |
| Rich Hill | 64.0 | 17 | 2.39 |
| Aaron Sanchez | 65.2 | 17 | 2.33 |
| John Lackey | 68.1 | 16 | 2.11 |
| Justin Verlander | 72.1 | 16 | 1.99 |
| Jake Arrieta | 68.0 | 15 | 1.99 |
| Robbie Ray | 52.0 | 15 | 2.60 |
| Noah Syndergaard | 62.2 | 14 | 2.01 |
| Cole Hamels | 62.0 | 14 | 2.03 |
| Jason Hammel | 54.0 | 14 | 2.33 |
| Clayton Kershaw | 86.2 | 14 | 1.45 |
| Corey Kluber | 66.2 | 14 | 1.89 |
| Jeff Samardzija | 71.0 | 14 | 1.77 |
| Alex Wood | 56.1 | 14 | 2.24 |
| Andrew Miller | 20.2 | 13 | 5.66 |
*It probably should be noted that there are actually three other pitchers tied with Andrew Miller in this category, but this table is long enough and none of them are freakish relievers.
To understand the ridiculousness of this you need to go step-by-step.
Step one is a first-pitch strike, which Miller has gotten with consistency. His 66.7 percent first-pitch strike rate is 26th among qualified relievers. Even a number that high means that 26 of 78 batters were disqualified from the three-pitch K. So when he’s had batters 0-1 he’s finished off them in two more pitches exactly a quarter of the time.
Getting from strike one to strike two Miller loses another 20 candidates by throwing balls. So we end up with 32 instances of an 0-2 count.
That means the southpaw only needed one more pitch 41 percent of the time. Other pitchers are wasting pitches in that count and Miller is seemingly going right after opposing hitters. That’s what the numbers seem to suggest, but it’s not that simple.
In fact, Miller’s zone profile on 0-2 pitches is exceedingly unremarkable. He buries the ball like anyone else.
The three-pitch strikeout numbers tell the story that Miller is a non-nonsense guy who doesn’t care for burning pitches. The reality is that his slider is so good that it’s almost impossible to waste it. Even when he steers well clear of the strike zone hitters chase after him. There’s no escape.
When 0-2 counts come around, Miller hasn’t reinvented the wheel. His tactics for the situation are virtually identical to every other pitcher in baseball. The only difference is he’s better.
Photo: Noah K. Murray / USATSI
So it appears that combining this info with Sullivan’s article might give a little additional context.
He gets to 0-2 pretty consistently, hitters try to protect and swing more freely on that devastating slider?
Pretty cool data points to absorb on him this week.