
Miller will make his first start of the 2026 season on Wednesday against the Houston Astros.
After beating the Houston Astros 10-2 on Tuesday night at Daikin Park, the Seattle Mariners will look to officially take the four-game series on Wednesday when they visit the Astros for game three (5:10 p.m. PT).
While the Mariners offense will look to stay hot after Tuesday's blowout, this game will also feature the return of M's starter Bryce Miller, who is making his season debut after being on the shelf since early in spring training because of an oblique strain.
In four rehab starts between High-A Everett and Triple-A Tacoma, Miller went 1-0 with a 1.98 ERA. His velocity was solid, as he hit 98 mph, and he struck out 14 batters in 13.2 innings. He did have seven walks.
The Mariners have said they will operate with a six-man rotation one time around, which means they'll be sending a bullpen arm down to the minor leagues in order to make room for Miller.
So, what we can we expect from the now fourth-year starter in his debut?
The hope
First off, it's important to understand that there's a difference between hope and expectation.
After getting to 61 pitches in his final rehab start, the hope is that Miller will be able to get 75 pitches or so and that those 75 pitches will be able to get Miller through at least five innings.
Since Jose A. Ferrer is on the paternity list and another bullpen arm will be sent down, the M's will have to hope that Miller can get through five innings, limiting the exposure to the mid-leverage bullpen arms before turning it over to Eduard Bazardo and Andres Munoz.
Bazardo has pitched in four of the last seven days, so they'd preferably like to avoid him as well, you'd imagine.
In order to hit these numbers, Miller will have to be efficient with his pitch count, pitch to contact and retire hitters early.
The actual expectation
The expectation, surely, is that Miller pitches well enough to get through those 75 pitches. He needs to be able to get through at least four innings and the M's need to see him keep his velocity throughout the outing while also being able to utilizing all his pitches.
The results will take care of themselves, but if Miller is showing that he can keep that velocity and throw all his pitches for strikes, while limiting the walks that plagued him during his rehab assignments, then this will have been an ultimately successful outing.
Seattle Mariners pitcher Bryce Miller (50) throws a pitch against the Cleveland Guardians in the first inning at Peoria Sports Complex. Rick Scuteri-Imagn ImagesAlso of note
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