"After the 0-2 homer things kind of spiraled a little bit," Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. "Then he got out of the first inning, but the second inning, I didn't like how it started, so I got him out of the game, so another tough day for him."
Miley ended August with an ERA of 3.06, right near the top of the leaderboard in the American League, but September has been a disaster. After failing to get out of the first inning in his first two starts of the month, the lefty allowed just two runs in six innings Sunday in Kansas City, but rather than build on that start against the Angels, Miley reverted back to the form he showed when the month began.
"We need to find a way to get him more comfortable and through these innings because he's done so well this entire season to have this label for any part of this season," Hinch said. "We're frustrated for him, and he's frustrated."
In four September starts, Miley has been charged with 18 runs in 7.1 innings while recording just 22 outs, and his ERA has jumped to 3.91.
"I know I'm not doing my part," Miley said. "I'm not getting the job done. I'm not going out there giving us a chance, and it sucks. It's tough to swallow, but at the same time, I've been through this, you gotta keep working and try to get though it."
The 32-year old spent plenty of time looking at video and insists he's not tipping his pitches, but he knows something just isn't right.
"Mentally, I feel fine," he said. "I've been in more of a mental grind. This is more frustrated cause once again, (I'm) throwing pitches where I want to. Gotta go back to the drawing board, something's going on, hitters are recognizing it, whereas early in the season they were a little later on recognition. I gotta make an adjustment.”’
If Miley were struggling in June, three out of four bad starts wouldn't be a big deal.There's plenty of time to figure things out, but with the regular season winding down next week there's a sense of urgency for him to get back on track. He'll make another start against the Angels next week in Anaheim, and he'll do so with something to prove.
"I gotta gain some trust back. I gotta go out and prove that I can get outs in the big leagues and prove that I can give this team a chance to win."
It's hard to pinpoint why Miley has struggled through September, but here is what we do know:
His one good start of the four came against a Royals team that hadn't seen him all season, while the poor starts were opposite division opponents that were facing him for the fourth or fifth time.We also know that the one time he pitched well in September came on the road. But at the same time, he has allowed 16 runs and recorded four outs in his last three outings at Minute Maid Park. Whatever the cause may be, Hinch knows he needs Miley to snap out of it.
“I’m concerned because we haven’t been able to get through this,” Hinch said. “We’re going to figure it out. He’s going to be really effective for us. Given the time, it’s a difficult time to assess because he’s got one start left before we’ve got to make some decisions. We’d obviously like to get him in a better frame of mind.”