Shelby Miller returns to Diamondbacks with promising start, win
Jun 20, 2016, 1:15 PM | Updated: Jun 21, 2016, 8:46 am
Arizona Diamondbacks' Shelby Miller pitches during the first inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Monday, June 20, 2016, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Diamondbacks starting pitcher Shelby Miller is off to the right start.
More accurately, a restart.
In his return to the majors following a disabled list stint and two rehab games in the minors, the Arizona right-hander earned his second win of the year, going a season-best 6.2 innings while allowing five hits, one walk and one earned run.
Miller also struck out five in Arizona’s 3-1 victory on Monday that completed a four-game sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies.
Miller outbattled former D-back pitcher Jeremy Hellickson, who allowed all three Arizona runs during a rocky first inning but recovered to go seven complete frames.
Phillies outs and hits for the game.
Like Hellickson, Miller thrived keeping the Phillies from getting under his pitches. He induced nine groundouts to just one flyout — only one deep hit got behind a D-backs outfielder on the afternoon.
No doubt, it was Miller’s best outing as a member of the Diamondbacks.
Miller survived a leadoff single in the first inning, but Andres Blanco’s leadoff double to begin the second would lead to a run courtesy of a Tyler Goeddel two-out double; the hit fell over the head of D-backs center fielder Socrates Brito, who was also recalled Monday. Blanco’s run cut Arizona’s lead to 3-1, but that was the extent of the damage.
After his only walk of the afternoon to begin the third frame, Miller found his groove, retiring the next 14 straight.
He sat at 84 pitches through six innings. But to begin the bottom of the seventh, Miller recorded two outs on 12 total pitches before Cameron Rupp and Goeddel knocked consecutive two-out singles off the D-backs pitcher.
Manager Chip Hale pulled Miller at 102 pitches (67 strikes) in favor of Tyler Clippard, who set up Daniel Hudson and Brad Ziegler to close the game.
