Padres' Mason Miller Crowns Teammate as 'Most Valuable Reliever' in MLB

The Reaper crowned a fellow dominant bullpen arm as the most valuable in baseball.

Sep 7, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres pitcher Mason Miller (22) throws a pitch during the ninth inning against the Washington Nationals at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The San Diego Padres have had plenty of bright spots this season, but no area of the team has had more consistent success than the bullpen.

Mason Miller is among the biggest reason for the Padres relievers to be held in such a high regard this season with a swing-and-miss percentage, strikeout percentage and average fastball velocity (101.5 mph) all in the 100th percentile in baseball.

Despite these incredible stats that go along with a minuscule 1.12 ERA, Miller still wouldn't put himself as the most valuable relief pitcher in San Diego. He told The Athletic's Dennis Lin that his pick for the most valuable arm in the bullpen — and the other 29 bullpens in MLB — belongs to Adrian Morejon.

“He’s the most valuable reliever on our team and, I would argue, in baseball too,” Miller said. “The ability to get swing-and-miss, the ability to limit damage, the ability to be really efficient — I think that’s the separator for him. There are so many guys that have really good stuff in this game, but the reason he’s able to throw so often and so many innings is obviously what he does to prepare for the games, but also his ability to go after guys, strike guys out if he needs to.”

Morejon owns a 2.87 ERA across 71 appearances this season, but has been a different animal since the All-Star break with just a 1.99 mark.

In terms of Miller's assessment, Morejon is right up there with him statistically. His swing-and-miss percentage is in the 96th percentile in MLB, his 99.4 mph average fastball velocity is in the 98th percentile and his chase percentage — his ability to get batters to swing for offerings outside the strike zone — is in the 99th percentile (compared to Miller's grading in the 94th).

“He is the most valuable pitcher on our team, hands down,” Miller said. “I feel like I’ve said that before, but I think it’s pretty cut and dry at this point. Just his mentality, his availability, his efficiency too. … Constant availability, constant quality.”

Morejon is also one of the best in baseball in terms of generating groundballs and limiting barrels on his pitches, both of which place him in the 99th percentile.

The Padres bullpen has the fourth-lowest average ERA in baseball, but have been used for the second-most innings in the sport. With the postseason right around the corner, manager Craig Stammen knows more than most people that the bullpen usage is only going to expand during what hopes to be a deep October run.

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