The New York Yankees signed Andrew Miller to a lucrative four-year contract this winter and so far, the left-hander has been every bit as good as the club could have hoped.
Andrew Miller, Dellin Betances forming dominant bullpen duo for Yankees
You don’t want to be trailing the Yankees in the late innings right now.
Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports
In fact, Miller has yet to allow a run in nine appearances this season, forming an overpowering one-two punch with Dellin Betances in the back of the Yankees bullpen. After some control issues in his first few outings, Betances has looked like the same dominant reliever who struck out nearly 40 percent of the batters he faced a year ago and finished with a 1.40 ERA in 70 outings.
All of which is bad news for the Yankees' opponents right now. In Monday's 4-1 win against the Rays, Miller and Betances helped snuff out any hope of a late Tampa Bay rally, with four New York relievers combining to allow only one hit and no runs in 3 1/3 innings. Betances pitched a 1-2-3 eighth before Miller nabbed his eighth save of the season with a scoreless ninth.
Monday's impressive performance came just a day after the club's bullpen threw 4 2/3 hitless frames to clinch a 6-4 win against the Mets.
The Yankees, meanwhile, have won nine of their last 11 contests to grab first place in the AL East, and their bullpen has been a primary reason for that success. New York's relievers had compiled a 1.86 ERA coming into Monday's action, which ranked second-best in baseball behind the Royals, and their 27 percent strikeout rate is the best of any bullpen in the AL.
With Miller holding down the closer’s role and Betances again looking like one of MLB’s best relievers, don’t expect the Yankees’ late-inning fortunes to change anytime soon.
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