Archie Bradley Shines In MLB Debut
The Arizona Diamondbacks top prospect, Archie Bradley, made his Major League debut on last night and it went about as well as the organization and fans could have hoped.
The stage for his debut couldn’t have been set any better, pitching against the Diamondbacks most hated rival and their ace, Clayton Kershaw, Bradley didn’t disappoint.
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Bradley went six innings, which is the longest outing for an Arizona starting pitcher this season. He struck out six, including the side in the fifth inning and walked four. He threw 112 pitches and 66 of those were strikes.
What might be the most impressive stat of the night, Bradley only allowed one hit. It came in the fourth inning, a double off of the bat of Howie Kendrick.
He was tossing the ball well, and he even picked up a hit of his own against the reigning National League MVP and CY Young winner, Kershaw.
After the game, Bradley told reporters,
"“You think about yourself throwing the ball well. To go out there and execute and keep everything under control. Now I want to keep building on it.”"
With Saturday’s performance, Bradley becomes the first pitcher since 2011 to give up one or fewer hits in a debut.
As you can see, he pitched very well. His pitch count was a bit high with the four walks, and he did get into a few deep counts, but that’s about the extent of the criticism.
This is a fantastic sign for Bradley and the Diamondbacks. Bradley has been the organization’s top prospect since he was drafted seventh overall in 2011. Last year he faced some adversity in dealing with a flexor strain in his elbow. Well, judging by his stellar spring and his debut, he’s bounced back from the injury quite well.
As the organization hands the team over to its young players, Bradley is proving to be a key piece (just as expected) in the Diamondbacks future.
Let’s not forget, the Diamondbacks upper management, specifically, General manager Dave Stewart, said that he thought Bradley was not ready for the majors this past Spring Training. Had management stuck with that train of thought, we would have all been watching Trevor Cahill pitch on Saturday.