Miley thrives mile high
Coors Field batting beast tamed for a night thanks largely to strong start
DENVER — Leads at Coors Field can feel nearly nonexistent.
The Astros watched a three-run advantage disappear Tuesday. They then wrestled away a three-run lead from the Colorado Rockies en route to victory.
Pitching in this offensive ballpark requires precision. Even at their best, hurlers can only hope to limit damage, not completely prevent it.
Wednesday night, the Astros handed their staff a three-run cushion after three innings, buoyed by solo home runs from Alex Bregman and Yuli Gurriel along with Josh Reddick’s two-run double in the third.
On a night the Astros called upon their most contact-prone starting pitcher and operated without two of their most reliable relievers, they came as
close to a shutdown as Coors Field allows. Colorado averages 6.9 runs on 11.2 hits per game inside this ballpark.
Starter Wade Miley and a carousel of four relievers permitted five singles and two doubles. The Rockies scored twice and, after the first inning, put one runner on third base. The stellar showing spearheaded a 4-2 win that completed the Astros’ two-game Interleague sweep and pushed their winning streak to five games.
“They did a great job,” Bregman said. “They were unbelievable. It’s not easy conditions to pitch in, but they grabbed the ball and got ready to rumble. It was fun watching them compete.”
Miley will not pitch in the final series before the All-Star break. So more than a week away from pitching awaits him. Seeing how far the southpaw could extend in his final first-half start seemed prudent.
The Astros rode Miley for a season-high 108 pitches. He struck out six across six superb innings.
After a forgettable first inning, talk of the veteran starter surviving into the sixth seemed silly. Miley walked the first two hitters he faced. Ten of his first 13 pitches were balls, prompting a mound visit from pitching coach Brent Strom before Miley recorded an out.
“I felt lost on an island out there,” Miley said. “I couldn’t throw a strike. I was trying to throw it over the plate and let them hit it. The last thing you want to do is walk guys onto the basepaths. I was able to get through it.”
Nolan Arenado, ahead 3-0 with the bases loaded, swung and sent an infield fly for a massive first out. David Dahl swung at the first pitch of his plate appearance, too.
“I can kind of see (Arenado) doing that because he can do damage on that pitch, knowing I’m just trying to get it over the plate,” Miley said. “I was a little shocked that the next hitter swung 0-0. But thank you. It worked out in my favor.”
After 26 pitches, Miley finished the first frame. The damage was limited to just Ian Desmond’s twoout, run-scoring single.
Though he thrives upon contact, Miley fared favorably in four previous starts in this offensive haven.
Because Miley can so effortlessly cut his fastball toward the inner half of the plate, contact against him is often soft and on the ground. Getting the ball in the air or to the outfield at Coors Field begs for disaster. Miley avoids it.
In 28⅓ previous innings inside this ballpark, Miley allowed only two home runs and 14 extra-base hits. Just one of the five hits he yielded on Wednesday went for extra bases, despite harnessing little command of his most trusted pitch.
Miley relied more upon his four-seam fastball than his cutter. Nine of his 18 called strikes arrived against the four-seamer. Five of his 10 swings and misses, too.
Feel for his cutter came later in the outing, when Miley finally found the rhythm that eluded him earlier. The final strikeout of his magnificent night came against the cut fastball. He required only 33 pitches to finish the fifth and sixth innings. Bear in mind, he needed 63 to record his first nine outs.
Without Ryan Pressly or Will Harris available, the Astros shuffled their relievers. Chris Devenski and Collin McHugh teamed to allow one run in the seventh.
McHugh faced the tying run twice, the final predicament on this premier night of pitching. He induced a popup from Trevor Story for a huge second out.
Arenado then bounced a slow roller to Bregman. He barehanded the baseball and threw out Arenado to end the inning and any thought of a threat.
“We pitched very well and we had a number of guys come and do it,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “Devo’s been throwing a ton. I wanted to get him in there against the lefties and then (McHugh) comes in and gets two of the best righthanded hitters in the National League out. You’ve got to piece it together.”
“It was a thin bullpen that needed to pitch exactly how it did tonight.”