Washington Nationals: Explaining Justin Miller’s drastic collapse

Washington Nationals pitcher Justin Miller looked like an angel from heaven. But how did Miller’s season fall from such grace?

Washington Nationals reliever Justin Miller just wanted a job. Coming off of a 5.48 ERA season in 2017 at Triple-A with the Salt Lake Bees, and a 5.70 ERA the year prior with the Colorado Rockies, it seemed like the end of the road.

In 2018, at 31 years old, the Nationals gave him a shot. And, despite all the odds, he had a near perfect start to his season.

In his first eight games, he pitched 10.2 innings while allowing two hits and struck out 21 batters. His FIP was -0.78. Mike Petriello of MLB.com said it best: “And we act like any of us know anything about…