Veteran right-hander Archie Bradley was originally tabbed as one of the Los Angeles Angels’ locks for the backend of the bullpen, but after an injury forced him to miss much of the regular season, the return on the contract left a lot to be desired.
Bradley signed a one-year $3.75 million contract prior to the season after a decent subpar 3.71 ERA in 51 innings with the Philadelphia Phillies.
However, he never showed much consistency, allowing seven earned runs in his first 5.2 innings pitched in five games to start the year. Bradley followed that up with a 5.2 scoreless inning run from Apr. 24-June 2 including two holds and one save.
At the time, the Angels still had closer Raisel Iglesias, which meant he could settle into a similar setup man role he’s held at different points in his career. Bradley wasn’t spectacular, but he had multiple blow-up outings, which is much of the reason his ERA ballooned to a collective 4.82 in 18.2 innings over the course of the season.
His final outing of the season came on June 25 when he allowed three unearned runs after two walks. But one day later, the Seattle Mariners and Angels got into a bench-clearing brawl, resulting in multiple suspensions for both teams.
To top off the situation, Bradley suffered a fractured right elbow in the altercation and he would miss the rest of the season. He attempted a comeback in late September, but the timeline didn’t add up, and the right-hander’s year was over.
Archie Bradley 2022 highlight
Bradley partaking in the brawl heard around the American League West was his biggest contribution to the team. His upside relied upon his availability to the team and he had the unfortunate outcome of a fractured elbow.
2023 outlook
Bradley is entering his age-30 season and remains unsigned ahead of the 2023 regular season, some issues with his forearm in the last month of the season are cause for concern, but some team will likely take a flier on the reliever if they’re in need of some bullpen depth.
He could receive a Major League deal, but a Minor League deal with an opt-out by a specific date if he doesn’t make the MLB team seems like a more probable contract for him to receive.
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