Zak Miller’s 2011 season came to a crashing halt last July, a line drive comebacker shattering his jaw and leaving a stunned Port Arthur Stadium crowd in silence.
As a result, the promising White Rock, B.C. right-hander spent the majority of his college season on the sidelines, recovering from every pitcher’s nightmare.
On Tuesday night the 20-year-old hopes to make a triumphant return to the mound for the red-hot Border Cats, winners of seven straight and in the thick of a compelling Northwoods League North Division playoff race.
While he’d rather not dwell on the horrific injury, Miller enters his record-tying third season with the Border Cats knowing it’s what fans are talking about. It was one of the scariest moments in recent sports memory in Thunder Bay, and most likely thought they’d seen the last of the starter-reliever.
“It was surprising when it happened, and it was something that, especially as a pitcher, you don’t think ever really does happen,” he said after Monday’s doubleheader sweep of the Mankato Moondogs.
“In the back of your head it’s there, but it’s something you have to get over and you kind of just have to keep working towards (returning from).
“Now that I’m here, now that I’m back, I’ve got nothing in the back of my head, nothing to keep me from playing at the top of my level.”
The imposing Arizona State product, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs in at 205 pounds, only managed to get into five games with the Sun Devils last season, giving up 18 hits in 10.2 innings, and spent most of the summer rehabbing a shoulder injury to his pitching arm.
While the club expressed plenty of interest in Miller, he said the only way he’d come back was if he thought he could help the Border Cats win.
He finally reached that point a couple of weeks ago.
“I told them I wanted to get to a point where if I do come back, I want to contribute. I’ll get the start (Tuesday), so that’s something I’m really looking forward to. You know, I want to bring a championship back to Thunder Bay,” Miller said.
Not surprisingly he likes the idea of being a hired gun, as the Border Cats have crept to within a pair of games of first place and seems to have the fundamentals down pat as they continue their march toward the playoffs.
“You know what, there are a lot of expectations, but those expectations are real,” said Miller, who went 1-4 with a 4.77 ERA last season.
“At this point, you know what, I have just as high expectations as anybody else and I want to come out there and I want to win.”
Considered at one point in time to be a major league prospect, Miller has continually been overlooked in the draft. He wants to find his way back on the MLB radar, but won’t worry one way or the other about it, knowing other than success on the field, there’s not much he can do to control the situation.
“That’s just kind of a bump in the road. It’s just one of those things where you’re kind of up and you’re down. Things kind of go your way and things don’t go your way. You’ve got to keep the positive and keep the focus on your goal, and hopefully things work out.
“But being at ASU, it’s a really great opportunity. And even being here in Thunder Bay, you get development, you get to put in the time and effort, and I’m really looking forward to it,” he said.
Miller said right now, there’s no place he’d rather be than Port Arthur Stadium.
“Thunder Bay has almost become a second home for me,” he said. “It’s a comfortable environment to play in and someplace I definitely get development.”
