The Red Sox have proven that their fall-back plans for the starting rotation are solid. Tim Wakefield and Alfredo Aceves have done everything that has been asked of them, even teaming up to get all nine innings in Wednesday's 11-6 win over the New York Yankees.
If there is ever a need to go deeper than that, another intriguing option remains. And it is becoming more intriguing by the day.
Andrew Miller, who also could factor into the Red Sox bullpen formula at some point, is on an extremely impressive run at Triple-A Pawtucket. Over Miller's last three appearances, he is 2-1 with a 1.80 ERA. While Wakefield and Aceves were doing their thing in Yankee Stadium, Miller was limiting the Norfolk Tides to a run in seven innings Wednesday night. More importantly, he did not walk a batter, continuing to avoid the one major issue that has saddled him with a "handle with care" tag since he began his Red Sox career, and for some time before while in the Detroit and Florida organizations.
The hard-throwing left-hander has struck out 16 while walking only two in those three outings. He has not thrown ball four in his last 15 2/3 innings, yielding just 11 hits in that span.
Prior to this run of dominance, Miller had issued 32 free passes in 40 1/3 innings. While his ERA (now at 2.54), strikeout totals, and opponents' batting average (now down to a miniscule .175) were all solid early on, that uncomfortably high walk rate — a bugaboo for Miller at past stops in his professional career — kept him from being a comfortable option to which the Red Sox could turn, if they ever needed to.
If this recent stretch of quality command is any indication that Miller has turned a corner, then Boston has to think long and hard about what to do. It can keep Miller at Pawtucket all season as a dominant starter and have him in the mix for a rotation spot beyond 2011. It could take the gamble on potentially messing with a good thing by bringing Miller up to help out in the bullpen, an iffy but tempting proposition given the loss of Rich Hill and the injury to Franklin Morales. Or, it could make sure Miller is first in line in the event the rotation suffers another hit or two.
Then again, Miller could have some say in the whole thing. As first reported by Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal, the lanky southpaw has a June 15 opt-out clause in his contract. Certainly, the rest of major league baseball has taken note of what the man many thought would be the next Randy Johnson is doing in Pawtucket, and would be interested if he became available. That date might be circled on calendars in front offices throughout the game.
That does not mean that June 15 is the end-all, be-all for Miller and the Red Sox. He insisted all spring that his marriage with the organization was made with the intention of long-term success, rather than a quick burst of success and a sprint for the door. He wanted to rebuild himself as a starter after struggling to find success in that role with the Tigers and Marlins.
Based on his performance for the PawSox, especially those of the past two weeks, the 26-year-old Miller may cause Boston to look at things on a more short-term basis.
