Wade Miller Shuts Down Cubs
On Sunday, I wrote that Wade Miller’s strikeout rate had gone down this year, and that likely had something to do with his struggles thus far. Miller apparently decided to make up that reduced rate in one game. His line against the Cubs Friday afternoon: 9IP, 2H, 1ER, 1BB, 14K. He did it in 102 pitches and with the wind blowing slightly out. And he really was that good.
If you didn’t see the game, and just saw the box score, you might chalk this up to the Cubs poor hitting. And while that’s part of the problem, Miller was just outstanding Friday. Sure, the usual suspects – Corey Patterson (who did hit a home run, however) and Lenny Harris – helped him out by regularly swinging at first pitches without hitting the ball hard (Alex Gonzalez would be included in that list, too, but he couldn’t hit any of Miller’s pitches, even to foul them off). But even if the Cubs didn’t swing at the first pitch, Miller was just throwing strike after strike (76 of them in his 102 pitches) and in the spots he wanted to. It was a bit similar to Jason Schmidt’s performance against the Cubs April 30. But better. (Even the home run allowed to Patterson wasn’t a bad pitch, as it was outside the strike zone low.) It might be the best pitched game the Cubs face all year. I at least hope it is.