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Mason Miller Named Finalist In MLB's Reliever of the Year Award
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- Mason Miller Named Finalist In MLB's Reliever of the Year Award
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
The San Diego Padres got their biggest nod of the postseason, as closer Mason Miller was named NL Reliever of the Year finalist by the BBWAA, according to a report from Padres social media along with multiple outlets. As George Bissell of NBCSports.com noted, it could be named for Miller by the time his career ends.
The nod isn't surprising at all. Miller set records throughout the season, especially early on, and his ERA was under 1 for most of the season. His stats included a career-best 1.67 ERA and a 129/26 K/BB ratio over 70 innings of work while converting 38 saves this past season.
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He does have competition, however. The other finalists were Jhoan Duran of the Philadelphia Phillies, who turned in arguably the best performance of his career with a pristine 1.82 ERA across 59 1/3 innings. He also picked up 33 saves in the process.
The other is Trevor Megill, who was where Miller and Duran wanted to be at the end of the postseason, picking up the final six outs of the World Series as the Milwaukee Brewers routed the Tampa Bay Rays, 4-1.
Miller certainly did all he could to get the Padres past the Brewers, however. He carried the Padres during the first two months of the season before he finally proved to be human, but he was less consequential during San Diego's midseason slump that briefly dropped the Padres below .500. That sparked a series of trade rumors that turned out to be groundless, with the New York Yankees being the primary team interested.
But the Padres recovered at the trade deadline, and Miller was instrumental in the surge that got the Padres in the playoffs. He pitched well in the Wild Card round as the Padres swept the Chicago Cubs, 2-0.
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Miller stumbled badly against Milwaukee, however. He was the loser in Game 2 of the NLDS as he couldn't finish a six-out save, and he gave up a two-out, walk-off single to Jackson Chourio. It was a bitter way to end a highly successful season, but the Padres have high hopes of getting back into the playoffs with a new ownership group that's reportedly willing to spend to keep the Padres in contention.
One thing we do know, though, is that the bullpen will be a San Diego strength, and Miller will be the strength of that bullpen going forward for the Padres.
The winner will be announced Nov. 11 when MLB releases a slew of award winners.
