Cleveland Indians: Don’t take Andrew Miller’s performance for granted

Andrew Miller came in and did the impossible for the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday night, proving why he is one of the best pitchers in the game.

Andrew Miller‘s final line from Wednesday night was more than impressive. He went two innings and struck out three, allowing zero hits or walks. But the story of the night was his performance in the seventh inning.

It must be nice to be Terry Francona and have a weapon like Miller. When the Cleveland Indians were up 3-0 in the bottom of the seventh, Carlos Carrasco loaded the bases while not recording an out.

Most teams may go to a few pitchers based on the best matchup, but not the Indians. Francona called on Miller with full confidence that he could get out of the situation without too much damage. And he did just that.

Miller came in and forced a weak groundout that saw Jose Ramirez come home with the ball, keeping the score at 3-0. Then came two strikeouts against two Baltimore hitters who never stood a chance.

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Miller finished up his two innings after throwing just 22 pitches, 18 of which went for strikes.

Fans have seen him dominate since he showed up last year, but Wednesday night’s performance was a special one. And after some boos were heard directed Miller’s way recently, fans must not take this kind of pitching for granted.

The fact Francona can call on Miller at any point in the game with the utmost confidence his star reliever can get out of any situation, against any opposing batter, is a rare sight to see.

The craziest thing is that fans also expect Miller to get out of these impossible situations. When he even allows a single hit, fans are surprised. Yet when Dan Otero allows a run, no one flinches.

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We all just need to take some time to appreciate what we are seeing, and avoid any hot takes related to Miller. Even if he makes mistakes during the year, he is going to be one of the key pieces in the team’s quest toward a World Series title, making opposing batters look foolish in the process.