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SF Giants may have no other choice than to shut down lefty reliever

This is the best option at this point.
ByNick San Miguel|
San Francisco Giants v Los Angeles Dodgers
San Francisco Giants v Los Angeles Dodgers | Andy Kuno/San Francisco Giants/GettyImages

Left-handed SF Giants reliever Erik Miller has been trying to return from injury for some time now, but the latest update on his progress was not great. At this point, the Giants may have no other choice than to shut him down the rest of this season.

Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area shared on social media that Miller had an MRI which showed no structural damage, but he will be shut down from throwing for two weeks:

SF Giants should probably shut down Erik Miller for the rest of the year

That means Miller would not begin throwing again until September. With the team unlikely to make any sort of real push for the playoffs, it does not make sense to try and rush him back in what is essentially a lost season.

Miller was diagnosed with a UCL sprain back in July. It was better than initial fears that he would require some sort of surgery, but whenever a pitcher has some elbow issues it is best to play it safe. It seemed Miller was making some progress towards a return, but this latest update really should mean the Giants shut him down just to play it safe.

It is a shame that Miller went down with an injury because he was pitching very well this season. In 36 appearances and 30 innings pitched he had a 1.50 ERA and was establishing himself as one of manager Bob Melvin's go-to arms late in games. He really would have come in handy lately after the team traded away both Tyler Rogers and Camilo Doval which greatly weakened the bullpen.

Now, it is probably a better idea for the Giants to give some of their other lefties in the bullpen a shot. Joey Lucchesi has looked solid this season, sporting a 3.13 ERA in 23 innings, and could definitely factor into the team's bullpen plans for 2026 if he finishes strong.

Matt Gage is another southpaw who has stood out with a 0.45 ERA in 20 innings pitched. He too has made a strong audition for next year's bullpen.

When Miller is healthy again, he will definitely be a key part of San Francisco's bullpen. For now though, the best course of action is to shut him down the rest of this season and allow his elbow to heal so he can come back strong for the team in 2026.

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