Arizona Diamondbacks: Bullpen Could Be in Archie Bradley’s Future
By Tim Haberin
A disappointment thus far at the big league level, Diamondbacks pitcher Archie Bradley would be willing to move to the bullpen if the team desired.
Not long ago, Archie Bradley was one of the better pitching prospects in the game of baseball. However, the Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander may need to settle for a bullpen role to make the roster in 2017. Though he’s never made a relief appearance in his professional career, that doesn’t appear to be an issue for Bradley. According to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic, the 24-year-old just wants to pitch:
"“With the way I’m throwing the baseball right now, the way I feel, the way the ball is coming out, I’m comfortable in any role, in any capacity. Just put me on this team.”"
That’s certainly the attitude you want to hear. And Bradley is right to feel confident at the moment. Though his overall numbers this spring aren’t pretty (7.98 ERA in 14.2 innings), his last outing was a big step in the right direction. As Piecoro notes, the righty held the Giants to only one hit over five innings. He also hasn’t allowed a walk in his last three appearances. That’s particularly encouraging considering Bradley’s career 4.5 BB/9 rate at the major league level.
Bradley credits his improved performance to having better command of his complete repertoire. Per the Arizona Republic:
"“I’m getting ahead, and when I’m getting ahead, I’m putting guys away. I’m throwing all four pitches. I’m throwing change-ups, I’m throwing cutters, I’m throwing curveballs. I feel like my last couple of outings, I’ve thrown more change-ups and cutters than I have curveballs, which is a huge sign of improvement for me.”"
A first-round, seventh-overall selection by the D-Backs in the 2011 MLB Draft, Bradley faced high expectations entering his professional career. And early on, he was meeting them. In 2013, he posted a 1.84 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 2.35 K/BB in 26 starts between the Advanced-A and Double-A levels. Those numbers earned him top-10 prospect rankings from Baseball America (#9), Baseball Prospectus (#9) and MLB.com (#5) prior to the following season.
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However, since making his major league debut in 2015, Bradley hasn’t been able to translate that same success. He made eight starts that season, managing a 5.80 ERA and 1.63 WHIP. Last year Bradley received a more extensive opportunity of 26 outings, but the results were still poor: 5.02 ERA with a 1.56 WHIP.
A 4.10 FIP, however, suggests he may not have been quite that bad, and he struck opponents out at a lively 9.1 K/9 clip. Nevertheless, Bradley’s showing was still disappointing any way you looked at it.
Unsurprisingly, the 2017 season is a crucial one in the career path of Archie Bradley. His success or failure this year could effectively determine whether he ever really makes his mark. The D-Backs have plenty of questions in their starting rotation, but the one thing they don’t lack is number of arms. Piecoro points out that the five-man staff is more or less set at Zack Greinke, Shelby Miller, Taijuan Walker, Robbie Ray and Patrick Corbin to start the year. Bradley doesn’t have much of an opening regardless of how he fares for the remainder of the spring.
That’s why the bullpen is probably his best bet, and the move could be good for him in the long run. Due to turn 25 in August, there’s still time for Bradley to figure things out as a starter and assert himself in that role. But working out of the bullpen could bolster his confidence and allow him to continue fine-tuning his approach. His strikeout ability might make him a natural fit, and the Arizona pen could definitely use the help after putting up a 27th-ranked 4.94 ERA last year.
Next: D-Backs 2017 Team Preview
As Piecoro mentions, Bradley would easily be able to slip back into the rotation if needed in the early stages of the season. That kind of flexibility will be good for a club like the Diamondbacks that will be trying to get off on the right foot in the first season of a new management regime.