Mariners right-hander Bryce Miller made his third Minor League rehab start on Wednesday night as he works toward returning to Seattle’s rotation after missing more than two months due to right elbow inflammation.
Miller went 5 2/3 innings for Triple-A Tacoma at Las Vegas and allowed two runs on two hits while walking one and striking out four on 76 pitches (51 strikes). His fastball was in the upper-90s, registering at 97.6 mph on a strikeout of Colby Halter in the second inning.
The outing could be Miller’s final rehab appearance before he is activated from the 15-day injured list -- though the current IL stint is his second this season with right elbow inflammation, so that remains to be seen.
“I know he’s been feeling good,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said prior to Seattle’s game in Baltimore on Wednesday. “I think the progress has been what we had hoped, and he’s in a good spot.”
Miller was perfect through the first four innings against Las Vegas before issuing a leadoff walk to open the fifth. Later in that frame, he surrendered an RBI double to Drew Smith. In the sixth, Miller gave up a solo home run to Nick Martini.
In his prior start for Tacoma, Miller gave up four runs over 3 2/3 innings (66 pitches) against Reno. In his first rehab outing, he tossed four scoreless innings at Sugar Land and struck out six while allowing just one baserunner.
Miller, who turns 27 on Aug. 23, had a breakout season last year, posting a 2.94 ERA across 31 starts. But he struggled early this season, pitching to a 5.73 ERA over 10 starts before going on the IL for the second time in early June.
If Miller is able to return to his 2024 form, it would be a boon for the Mariners, who have one of the game’s best starting staffs on paper but have seen their starters post an ERA of 3.87 this season -- a respectable figure, to be sure, but nearly half a run higher than the MLB-best 3.38 mark Seattle’s starters finished with last year.