Los Angeles Dodgers rookie pitcher Bobby Miller, 24, has been given the big job of starting Game 2 of the Division Series.

Los Angeles Dodgers rookie pitcher Bobby Miller, 24, has been given the big job of starting Game 2 of the Division Series.

Miller will take the mound against the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 2 of the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California, on Tuesday (April 10).

The Dodgers lost Game 1 of the National League Division Series on April 8, 2-11. Ace Clayton Kershaw got the start, 먹튀검증 but was tagged for six runs on six hits (one home run) and one walk in ⅓ of an inning. It’s the first time Kershaw has ever been pulled from a postseason game without making it through the first inning.

With their backs against the wall, the Dodgers turned to rookie Miller to take the mound in Game 2. Miller, who was selected in the first round (29th overall) of the 2020 First-Year Player Draft, made his big league debut this season and enjoyed a successful rookie campaign, going 11-4 with a 3.76 ERA in 22 games (124 1/3 innings).

According to MLB.com, “Considered the Dodgers’ best pitching prospect since Walker Buehler, Miller didn’t fare well in Triple-A before being called up to the big leagues. This year, he was limited to four starts in the minors because of a right shoulder injury. The perception of him has changed dramatically in the months since, as he has answered the questions thrown at him by overcoming every challenge this season. Kershaw is the Game 1 starter, but Miller is the Dodgers’ most reliable starter,” he said of Miller’s Game 2 start.

Miller made his major league debut this year, and this will be his first postseason start. “I’m just really excited,” Miller said. “I’m just really excited, and I’m going to prepare like any other game. I always want to win every game I pitch,” Miller said of his Game 2 start.

For a rookie, the pressure of the postseason isn’t easy to handle. As MLB.com notes, “Rookie jitters are real in the postseason, as the Dodgers found out in Game 1. James Outman, who has played fantastic defense in the second half of the season, made a mistake at the start of the game, letting a ball slip past him. Outman admitted after the game that the nerves of his first postseason start got the best of him,” he explained.

“When you’re in trouble and things are getting serious, you just have to make sure you don’t let the game get out of hand,” Miller said. You just have to slow down a little bit, take your foot off the mound, take a deep breath, find something that makes you a little bit more comfortable mentally. And as long as you know that you’re blessed to be here, you’re okay,” he said, exuding confidence.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, “You don’t know until you experience it. I think it’s good for him to be a little nervous. It’s a good thing, it’s natural. Once he throws that first pitch, he’ll find out slowly. That’s the ocean I’m looking for,” he said of Miller’s performance.

Dodgers slugger Freddie Freeman said, “He’s ready to go. From his first start of the year to now, the way he’s been on the mound, the way he’s been running the game, the way he’s been attacking hitters, we’ve got a lot of faith in him,” Freeman said.

Arizona, meanwhile, will start right-hander Zach Galen, a fifth-year major leaguer. Galen is 17-9 with a 3.47 ERA in 34 games (210 innings) this season. In the postseason, he made his debut in last year’s Wild Card Series and earned a two-run win over Milwaukee with six innings of five-hit ball, three walks and four strikeouts.