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Major League Baseball has a new monster closer. Enter Oakland Athletics right-hander Mason Miller, 26, who throws a fastball that can reach up to 167 mph.

In the top of the ninth inning of the 2024 Major League Baseball World Series home game against the Washington Nationals at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland, California, USA, Miller retired the first three batters he faced to preserve Oakland's 7-6 victory in the "KKK" inning.

Miller began by striking out the first batter he faced, Lane Thomas, with a 100 mph (160.9 km/h) fastball right down the middle, then got him to ground out on a four-pitch outside slider. He then fouled off Joey Gallo on a 102.9 mph (165.6 km/h) four-seam fastball in the fifth for a foul tip. Against Luis Garza, he used a low slider to get a swinging strikeout to end the game on 13 pitches. He earned his third save of the season and lowered his ERA to 2.25.

His first start of the season was shaky with three runs in the first inning against the Cleveland Indians on March 31, but he hasn't allowed a run in seven innings in five games since. He struck out 15 batters in eight innings, improving his strikeout rate to 16.9 per nine innings, and earned his third straight save. All of those saves have come with one-run leads.

His four-seam fastball, which averages 100.5 mph (161.7 km/h), has tremendous power. He is the only pitcher among all 299 major league pitchers to average more than 100 mph against 25 or more batters, and he impressed with a 103.7 mph (166.9 km/h) fastball against the Texas Rangers on Dec. 12, the fastest in the league this season.

Miller, a 6-foot-3, 196-pound right-hander, was selected by Oakland in the third round, 97th overall, of the 2021 draft. He was so undersized that he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2018, during his sophomore year at Waynesburg University, and was an unspectacular pitcher who averaged 88 mph (141.6 km/h). But he was undeterred, and through diet and strength training, his weight rose from 68 kilograms to over 90 kilograms, and his velocity increased, reaching 99 mph (159.3 km/h).

However, Miller went undrafted in 2020 when the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was dramatically reduced from 40 rounds to five rounds due to COVID-19. After transferring to Gardner-Webb University for another year of college and being selected by Oakland in the third round of the 2021 draft, Miller was sidelined in 2022 with a shoulder injury, but quickly moved through the minors and made his major league debut in April of last year.

He showed promise, going 3-1 with a 3.78 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 10 appearances (6 starts-33⅓ innings), splitting time between start and relief, but spent four months on the disabled list from May 12 until his return on Sept. 7 with elbow soreness. As a result, Oakland shifted Miller's role to the bullpen this year. Miller took over the closer's spot vacated by Trevor May, and he's showing signs of breaking out early in the season.

His velocity is better now that he's throwing 1-2 innings shorter in the closer's role. His average four-seam fastball is up 2.2 miles per hour (3.5 kilometers per hour) from last year, and his slider is up as well. His pitches are so effective that his 43.3 percent false-swing induction rate ranks second in the league. With Oakland's offense so weak, it was questionable how many save opportunities he'd get, but he's 6-2 in his last eight starts and has three saves. With the A's unexpectedly improving to 7-9 on the season, Miller's fastball has also gotten a lot of attention.

"I'll do whatever the team needs me to do," Miller said. I'm not going to worry about years down the road, I'm just going to focus on doing my job and doing it well this year," Miller said, adding that he's happy with the closer's role and doesn't obsess over his velocity, saying he's "more concerned with where I'm going to throw the ball and how I'm going to get swings."

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