Three Reasons Why Bryce Miller is a Unicorn

Since General Manager (now President of Baseball Operations) Jerry Dipoto took the reins, this team has invested a lot of draft capital in pitching. Sam Carlson, Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Michael Morales, Bryan Woo, and Bryce Miller are just a few of the arms this team drafted in recent years. Each brings a different skill set that the Mariners' development team has zeroed in on to maximize these prospects' effectiveness.

Reason #1: Revolutions Make the Ball Go Round

Kirby is armed with a two-seamer and elite control, Gilbert offers up the extension and a wicked curveball, and Woo has command of four pitches and a fastball with late life. But Miller might have the most dominant pitch—a rising fastball with some elite RPMs.

There are two guys on that list; one is their team's ace (Strider), and the other is their team's fifth starter (Miller). This speaks to the depth of the Mariners' pitching staff and bodes well when Miller is lined up against lesser arms later in the season.

While the revolutions are on the upper echelon, let's put his small sample size into perspective with the rest of the league. A little more than a month into the season, Miller is on a short list that includes Luis Castillo, Drew Rasmussen, Eduardo Rodriguez, and Zac Gallen. Why, might you ask? These pitchers have most starts of 6+ innings, two-or-fewer hits, one-or-no walks, and zero home runs during the 2023 season. And he's done that TWICE.