The Los Angeles Angels have dealt with a plethora of injuries this season, and among the players currently sidelined is Archie Bradley.
The right-hander has been out since June 26, when he fractured his elbow during the Angels’ benches-clearing brawl with the Seattle Mariners. He sustained the injury after tripping over the dugout railing and falling on his arm.
Bradley reflected on the incident and regrets that it happened, per Sam Blum of The Athletic:
“Every now and then I’ll think about it,” Bradley told The Athletic on Monday. “And I just think ‘how stupid.’ When I talk about it, it’s just like, ‘Man, what an unfortunate way to get hurt.’”
Bradley is still a ways off from returning but hopes to be back on the mound sometime in September:
“Even if it’s one inning. Not throwing would be the worst thing for me,” Bradley said Monday. “In my head, it’s likely. Today is the (15th). And if you just do basic math, at least a month building up throwing. Hopefully, the last two weeks, three weeks of the season would be amazing.”
The Angels signed Bradley to a one-year contract during Spring Training. Prior to his injury, he pitched to an 0-1 record, 4.82 ERA, 3.33 FIP and 1.29 WHIP with 15 strikeouts against seven walks in 18.2 innings pitched (21 appearances).
While those numbers don’t exactly stand out, Bradley was pitching much better as of late, posting a 1.42 ERA in eight games before the freak accident.
If Bradley is able to return before the end of the regular season and put up good numbers, it would improve his stock heading into the free agency. The 30-year-own owns a 3.92 ERA in 329 career games since entering the league in 2015.
Suarez perfect through five innings, but loses scoreless streak
Jose Suarez went into Tuesday night’s outing against the Seattle Mariners with a 17.1 scoreless innings streak and promptly retired the first 16 batters faced.
However, things would unravel in the sixth inning as he allowed four consecutive hits before being removed from the game. He wound up taking the loss after allowing three runs in 5.1 innings of work.