Jacob Matthew Miller (born November 23, 1971) is a former right-handed

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relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weat ...

who played for the Colorado Rockies and

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

. He was noted for his distinct sidearm delivery.

Independent and Minor League career

Miller began his professional baseball career playing for the Greenville Bluesmen in the independent Big South League (–) and

Texas–Louisiana League The Central Baseball League, formerly the Texas–Louisiana League, was a independent baseball league whose member teams were not affiliated with any Major League Baseball (MLB) franchises. In 1991, potential owners, Dallas businessman Byron P ...

(). He signed with the Texas Rangers in December 1997, was released at the end of spring training in 1998 and then re-signed with the Rangers in June. He played in their minor league system for the

Savannah Sand Gnats The Savannah Sand Gnats were a minor league baseball team based in Savannah, Georgia. They were a member of the A-level South Atlantic League. The Sand Gnats were an affiliate of the New York Mets in their final nine seasons. The team relocated ...

(1998),

Charlotte Rangers The Charlotte Rangers, based in Port Charlotte, Florida, were an American minor league baseball team that existed from 1987 through 2002. The team played at Charlotte County Stadium as a Class A Florida State League affiliate of the Texas Rang ...

(), Tulsa Drillers (1999–) and

Oklahoma RedHawks Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New M ...

(2000). In November 2000, he was signed as a minor league

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by the

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and played for their triple-A Pacific Coast League affiliate,

Portland Beavers The Portland Beavers was the name of separate minor league baseball teams, which represented Portland, Oregon, in the Pacific Coast League (PCL). The team was established in 1903, the first year of the PCL. Franchise history Many baseball teams ...

, in . He was signed by the Oakland Athletics after the 2001 season and played for their triple-A affiliate,

Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics for 15 ...

, in .

Major League career

He signed with the Colorado Rockies during the off-season and spent most of at Triple-A with the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, but finally made his major league debut with the Rockies June 27 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He appeared in only four games for Colorado that season and was again granted free agency in November. The Cleveland Indians became Miller's fifth major league organization in five years when they signed him in February . He became an integral part of the Indians' bullpen, appearing in 57 games and posting a 4-1 record, 3.09

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, 55 strikeouts, 23 walks and one save. He continued his success in before a strained elbow tendon in his throwing arm landed him on the disabled list in mid-July. He made two rehabilitation appearances in August, but was shut down for the season when the soreness in his elbow recurred. He appeared in 23 games for Cleveland in 2005 and was 1-0 with one save and a 1.82 ERA. He made the Indians opening day roster in and appeared in six games in April. But when his elbow symptoms returned during a game on April 19, he was again placed on the disabled list and the following week underwent surgery to repair the flexor tendon in the elbow. He returned in September and was effective in eight appearances. For the season, he was 1-0 with a 3.45 ERA in just 15 innings. In , Miller began the season on the disabled list with a right forearm strain. When he returned May 9, he was

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to Buffalo and made 14 appearances for the Bisons before he was recalled to Cleveland June 10, when Jeremy Sowers was sent down to Buffalo. He made only two appearances for the Indians and was returned to Buffalo to make room on the roster for Jason Stanford who was inserted into the

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in place of the ineffective Sowers. After the 2007 season, Miller signed with the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

, but did not appear in a game for their organization before being traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates. On July 29, , Miller announced his retirement, after posting a 4-7 record with a 5.82 ERA for Triple-A Indianapolis.

Independent and Minor League career

Major League career

References

External links