This big, young lefty is ‘front and center’ in SF Giants’ bullpen competition

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — What a difference in perspective a few feet can make.

Just ask Cooper Hummel, who’s gone from stepping into the batter’s box against Erik Miller at Triple-A last season to catching his bullpens this spring.

“I’ve faced him enough; I hate facing him,” Hummel said. Upon shifting into a squat and lining up behind the plate, though, the catcher’s tone changed. “He made some guys look stupid today. It was gross.”

Miller, 26, is still waiting to make his major-league debut. Despite posting a 2.77 ERA in 48 relief appearances last season in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, the call never came to join the Giants’ bullpen. But after being added to the 40-man roster over the winter, and being one of only four left-handed relievers in camp, there’s a good chance the Stanford product won’t have to wait much longer.

“I think he’s front and center,” said new manager Bob Melvin, a Cal guy, of Miller’s standing in the battle to join Taylor Rogers as the second southpaw in the relief corps, kindly choosing to overlook their colleges’ rivalry. “If we’re trying to keep two lefties of the guys that are sitting here right now, he’s got a great opportunity.”

The others lefties vying for one of the eight slots in the bullpen — most of which are already accounted for — each boast more experience than Miller. Major-league spring training is nothing new to Amir Garrett, 31, and Ethan Small, 27, who have more than 300 major-league innings to their names.

But neither offers the upside of Miller, a fourth-round pick of the Phillies in 2019 who was sent west last summer in exchange for Yunior Marte. In 2022, Miller was chosen as the Phillies’ representative for the Futures Game, and what he lacks in experience he makes up for in physicality.

Standing 6-foot-5 and 240 pounds with a bushel of blond hair under his cap, Miller always profiled as the prototypical starter. (Hummel, 5-foot-10, compared his build to a “bowling ball.”) It wasn’t until 2022 that he began transitioning to the bullpen, and not until arriving in the Giants organization until he began to find success.

The most important factor, Miller explained, was mental.

“It was more so just building that confidence,” Miller said. “When I pitched in ‘22 (for the Phillies’ Triple-A affiliate), it did not go very well. Initially the first couple outings weren’t great, and it was kind of a little, ‘Oh boy here it goes again.’