It's Miller Time

Thursday, November 20, 2008 | Posted by Kujo

The Cardinals have signed 35-year-old lefty reliever Trever Miller to a two-year contract, according to Ken Rosenthal. Thanks to MLB Trade Rumors for the scoop. Unfortunately, this seems like the best we're willing to do in regards to shoring up the bullpen, and it's not a whole lot.

Trever is a soft-tossing lefty who stays in the range of 74-86 mph. Last year, he had a really good K/9 rate (9.14), but that was partially negated by a pretty ugly BB/9 (4.15). He's a step up from Ron Villone, but his total impact on next year's team is questionable. At two years, we'll have Miller until he's 37-years-old, when we just might have a lefty prospect that's ready to step into his role in the bullpen.

It's good to see we've really hit the ground running this off-season.

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2 comments:

chetthejet said...

I see you're not as hyped about the Miller signing as some around the blogosphere. It may be relief that Mo has actually made a move. Still, I think the reality of mid-market shopping is setting in, and with that in mind, Miller's not a bad catch in my mind. Don't sell out throwing soft, however. Command is king. That being said, I would tend to take heed of your research into Miller's BB/9. Good point. Maybe Dunc can help him out in that regard.

12:33 PM, November 20, 2008  
kotheb said...

I think it's a good signing. A veteran LOOGY who has a good K rate, a great strand rate, low slash stats vs. lefties, and was most likely cheaper than our other options.

When you compare the main guys we've supposedly been after (Affeldt, Beimel, Miller, Ohman, Rhodes) in slash stats vs. lefties and strand rate, Miller is one of the top two (with Rhodes maybe edging him out a bit).

Considering he pitched in a superior hitting division, I give this signing a thumbs up. That comes, of course, with the caveat that we aren't done adding to our bullpen from the left side.

4:25 PM, November 20, 2008  

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