NEW YORK – Last month, when his struggles were most pronounced, a realization came upon Diamondbacks reliever Archie Bradley. His job might be on the line.
“Personally, I was scared of getting sent down,” Bradley said. “I was like, ‘I have to pitch better. I have to improve.’”
In the span of five weeks, Bradley has gone from a pitcher who looked like he might not belong in the majors to one getting the final outs at Yankee Stadium in a 4-2 win on Tuesday night.
In the club’s first save opportunity since Greg Holland was removed from the closer’s role, Bradley retired each of the four batters he faced, recording the final out in the eighth before retiring the side in the ninth.