Arizona Diamondbacks’ Archie Bradley named top right-handed pitching prospect
Jan 15, 2014, 8:10 PM | Updated: 8:10 pm
Through all the wheeling and dealing the Arizona Diamondbacks have done the last couple of seasons, one player who has pretty much remained untouchable is pitcher Archie Bradley.
The seventh pick in the 2011 MLB Amateur Draft, the right-handed has posted a 26-11 record to go along with a 2.76 ERA over the course of his brief minor league career. At just 21 years old, Bradley projects as a future ace and is someone the team has not been willing to give up, and with good reason.
Quite simply, he’s one of the best prospects in baseball, and Wednesday MLB.com ranked him as the top right-handed pitching prospect in the game.
The No. 7 overall pick in 2011, Bradley might be the starting quarterback at Oklahoma if he hadn’t signed with Arizona for $5 million. At age 20, he spent most of the season in Double-A and ranked third in the Minor Leagues in wins (14) and ERA (1.84), and sixth in strikeouts (162 in 152 innings). Bradley’s 92- to 97-mph fastball and hard curveball are both swing-and-miss pitches, and he made strides with his changeup and command last season.
By all accounts, the D-backs plan on giving Bradley an opportunity to earn a spot in the starting rotation this spring, and it would come as a shock to no one if he did just that.
