Getting to Major League Baseball is hard. Staying there and having a long-term impact is even harder.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have found that out firsthand in recent years. They’ve called up several talented rookies, and many of those rookies have found early success. But sustaining that success into year two has proven far more difficult.

One 2023 rookie looked to be a massive part of the Dodgers’ future starting rotation, which has been pillaged by injuries all season. But things haven’t worked out the way L.A. would have hoped, and one has to ponder how different the Dodgers’ season could have been.

On Tuesday, Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report named sophomore starting pitcher Bobby Miller’s struggles as the biggest “what-if” from the team’s 2024 season.

“Big things were expected from Bobby Miller as a budding star coming off a terrific rookie season,” Reuter said.

“Instead, he has an 8.52 ERA and 1.77 WHIP in 56 innings over 13 starts, and he was demoted to Triple-A on July 10. He returned on Aug. 17 trying to earn a spot on the postseason staff, but after struggling to a 9.00 ERA in 27 innings over six starts he was optioned back to Triple-A last week and he will likely be a non-factor in the postseason.”

Miller started Game 2 of the Dodgers’ postseason series against the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2023, so missing the roster altogether would be a painful regression from one year to the next.

The stats are ugly, but the talent remains obvious whenever Miller takes the mound. His fastball is in the 94th percentile for average velocity, but hitters are slugging a preposterous .634 against the pitch. Command is everything at the big-league level, and right now, Miller simply doesn’t have it.

If Miller can harness his electric stuff better, he could still be a factor for the Dodgers in 2025. But for now, they’ll have to count on other arms to get them through October, though there’s always a chance the next man up can be called upon.