SF Giants reliever's good luck may start to catch up with him soon

The SF Giants have had a dominant bullpen this season. Their relievers have had a collective ERA of 2.36 on the year which is the best in MLB. Left-handed reliever Erik Miller has been a key part of the bullpen despite an alarming trend.

In 22 innings on the year, Miller has an impressive 1.23 ERA but he has done it by striking out 17 batters while walking 17 batters. Usually, when a pitcher walks as many batters as he strikes out it is not a recipe for success, but Miller has made it work somehow.

SF Giants reliever Erik Miller thriving despite high walk rate

Last season, Miller also had a fairly high walk rate as he issued 38 free passes in 67 and 1/3 innings of work. However, he was also a strikeout machine as he punched out 87 batters last year.

The concern is that perhaps Miller has gotten by with a little bit too much luck combined with smoke and mirrors so far this season. His FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) on the season has been 4.26 which shows that he may very well be the beneficiary of Lady Luck.

Comparing Miller's numbers to Randy Rodríguez's is instructive. In 29 and 1/3 innings pitched on the year, Rodríguez has a filthy ERA of 0.61 with 43 strikeouts compared to just three walks. That is truly remarkable and shows why his numbers make a lot more sense than Miller's.

Right now, Miller is the only southpaw option San Francisco has in the bullpen. There was some competition for a second lefty in the bullpen back in spring training, but the Giants opted to only carry Miller. It has obviously not harmed them too much this season given how strong the bullpen has been, but if Miller's walk rate starts to catch up with him then the Giants may have to look into calling up another lefty.

According to the team's transaction log, San Francisco brought back an old friend in Scott Alexander on a minor league deal. The lefty was solid part of the team's bullpen in the past so he could provide another left-handed option in the bullpen for manager Bob Melvin if they decide to call him up at some point.

For right now though, Miller is still flying by the seat of his pants and is somehow getting out of jams and working through traffic. Let's just hope he can cut down on the walks going forward so things are a little less stressful for both him and fans alike.