| Johnny Miljus | |
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| Pitcher | |
| Born: June 30, 1895 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
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| Died: February 11, 1976 (aged 80) Fort Harrison, Montana |
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| Batted: Right | Threw: Right |
| MLB debut | |
| October 2, 1915 for the Pittsburgh Rebels | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 25, 1929 for the Cleveland Indians | |
| Career statistics | |
| Win-loss record | 29-26 |
| Earned run average | 3.92 |
| Strikeouts | 166 |
| Teams | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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John Kenneth (Johnny) Miljus (Serbian Cyrillic Џон Кенет Миљуш or Serbian Latin Džon Kenet Miljuš) (June 30, 1895 - February 11, 1976) nicknamed Big Serb and Jovo, was Serbian-American baseball player who pitched in Major League Baseball between 1915 and 1929. Miljus batted and threw right-handed. He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Miljus served in the United States Army during World War I, in France, as part of the 320th Infantry. His wartime bunkmate was Joe Harris. The two of them would later be reunited as members of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Miljus was wounded in action and was to be sent home. He chose to rejoin his unit after leaving the hospital, instead of heading home.
After toiling in the minors, this lanky 6'1" 178 pounder spent six seasons in the major leagues as a pitcher. Miljus reached the majors in 1915 with the Pittsburgh Rebels of the outlaw Federal League, spending one year with them before moving to the Brooklyn Robins (NL, 1920–21), Pittsburgh Pirates (NL, 1927–28) and Cleveland Indians (AL, 1929). More than a dependable pitcher, he filled several roles coming out from the bullpen as a closer or a middle reliever, and as an occasional starter as well. Unfortunately, Miljus is probably best remembered as the pitcher who served a ninth-inning wild pitch that escaped Pirates' catcher Johnny Gooch and allowed the New York Yankees to sweep the 1927 World Series. In Game Four, after striking out Lou Gehrig and Bob Meusel, and with two strikes on Tony Lazzeri, the next Miljus' pitch rolled far enough away for Earle Combs to score the winning run.
In a seven-season career, Miljus posted a 29-26 record with 166 strikeouts and a 3.92 ERA in 457⅓ innings pitched, including 45 starts, 15 complete games, two shutouts, and five saves.
Miljus died in Fort Harrison, Montana, at the age of 80.
As of 2006, Miljus has one of the lowest ERA (3.92) of any major league pitcher coming out of University of Pittsburgh with more than 100 innings, behind Bob Malloy (3.26), Doc Medich (3.77) and Steve Swetonic (3.81).