Shelby Miller is Stepping Up for the Diamondbacks

While Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo has not officially named a closer since Justin Martinez went down with an elbow injury, there was little doubt about who would be called upon to close out a 5-2 ballgame on Wednesday afternoon.

Shelby Miller came on to retire the first two batters, gave up a single, and then struck out Dominic Canzone on a splitter down and away in the zone to record his seventh save of the year. There was no ninth inning drama, as Miller did what he's done all year, which is step into the breach and provide stability.

In a year that has seen more than it's share of instability in the bullpen for the Diamondbacks, in large part due to injuries, Miller has been a revelation. Signed to a minor league contract in spring training, his stuff and readiness impressed from the outset, allowing him to make the team.

Starting out as a middle relief and secondary setup option, his role quickly developed into a high leverage one. Then in mid-April he needed to suddenly take over most of the closing duties when A.J. Puk and Justin Martinez went down. Martinez came back from the injured list to reclaim his role again, but now may be out for a long period of time, perhaps even the rest of the season, and Miller is once again filling those shoes.

In 28 games, 27.2 innings pitched, Miller has a 1.63 ERA, to go along with a 3-1 record, seven saves, eight holds, and three blown saves in 18 save situations. The shiny ERA may not hold up over a full season, as all it takes is one bad outing to blow up a reliever's ERA. But his 2.97 FIP, or Fielding Independent Pitching, indicates he's been very solid a with just a modicum of luck tossed in, keeping runners from scoring.

Miller's fastball is averaging 95 MPH, the hardest he's thrown since 2017. He uses the pitch 64% and his devastating splitters 29%. He'll mix in a sweeper against right-hand hitters, also to great effect.

Miller turns 35 in October, but is a remarkable physical specimen. His upper body is of sinewy muscle structure, reflective of the hard work and discipline he's had towards his workout routine. He's pays great attention to his arm care and listens to his body.

I was able to catch up with him on Tuesday, the day after Justin Martinez came out of the game with a severe elbow injury, to discuss a number of topics. Here are some of his comments.

How are you and the rest of the relievers down in the pen dealing with everything going on around you?

"Injuries suck. There's not really much you can do about it. Unfortunately, it's just part of the game. When you get hit with a bunch of them at once, it's tough, but kind of next-man-up mentality and you've just got to keep playing baseball

"We come in and prepare to take care of ourselves every single day. We've got the training staff working mostly on us, in the weight room, taking care of our bodies and making sure we're able to go out there and perform."

Do you believe reduced fastball use and more emphasis on maximum effort spin is what's leading to more pitcher injuries this year?

"I would say probably fastball is probably better on the arm than any other pitch. I know people's stuff's getting better, people are throwing harder, the game's evolving. I think that there's some possibility with more injuries evolving around that.

"People are chasing numbers more than getting guys out,wanting to see the shapes and throw hard and be nasty on the computer. But injuries are going to happen. It's inevitable, but you've got to deal with it and find ways to get better."

Related Content: What's Causing the MLB Pitcher Injury Epidemic?

How have you dealt with the roller coaster of the changes back and forth in your own role?

"It's just one of those things where I have the mentality of however I can help the team is how I come every day to the field. Whether I'm pitching in the fifth, the eighth, the ninth, it doesn't really matter to me. I just want to help the team win however I can. I know it's pretty cliche, but that's honestly how I feel. When guys go down, people have to step up."

"We've lost some big arms.It's something you have to deal with, but there's other guys prepared.We're ready to fill in some big shoes.Obviously, it's not easy losing anybody, but like I said, it comes with the territory part of the game.You've got to keep going."

How different is the mindset knowing you're likely to be used in high leverage or closing situations?

"When I'm down in the pen, I relax for a couple innings and then start getting loose and being prepared for the phone to ring. Obviously, if it's a big situation, I know I'm most likely going to be in there, so I'm prepared for that and ready.

"Everybody knows their role. Right now, it's a little bit more fluid. [Due to Martinez injury] It's kind of hard to know what's going to happen down there, but I think over time and the more games we play throughout the weeks, we'll settle in and know where we're going to be."

Have you ever seen anything quite like this with the injuries in the pen?

"No. I mean, it's pretty tough. Not with big players like this. We haven't had AJ much this year, who was outstanding here last year and obviously an incredible pitcher, and then [Corbin Burnes] getting hurt losing him, [Martinez] getting hurt last night. It's just sometimes when it rains, it pours. Like I said, you just got to fill the void however you can."

"I know those are big names and big shoes to fill, and our team's much better with them,but we've got to find ways to win with the roster that we have, and I think who we have here is going to be more than capable of helping us win"