In late June, the Los Angeles Angels and Seattle Mariners engaged in a dugout-clearing brawl that led to a number of suspensions and even some injuries. One of the players who had among the worst outcomes from that fight was Archie Bradley.
Bradley, one of the Angels main bullpen acquisitions in the offseason, attempted to swing over the dugout fences as opposed to just walking to engage in the brawl. In the chaos, he suffered a fractured elbow that was going to keep him out a minimum of two months.
Well, nearly three months later, Bradley still remains on the IL. He is only now showing signs that a return may be coming, as he recently began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Salt Lake.
The Angels announced on Thursday morning that Bradley would be joining the Salt Lake Bees on a rehab assignment, and he made his first appearance with the team on Thursday night. He was brought into the game in the third inning, where he recorded three outs while allowing just one hit.
He forced three groundouts and gave up a single, ultimately a successful rehab appearance from a pitcher who had been struggling prior to a near three-month injury.
Bradley, 30, had appeared in 21 games with the Angels prior to his injury. In that time, 18.2 innings, he amassed a 4.82 ERA, 1.286 WHIP, an 85 ERA+, and 15 strikeouts. These numbers are not great by any stretch, but a 3.33 FIP suggests there may have been some bad luck involved.
It’s unclear how long he’ll stay with the Bees before he makes his return to the Angels. Michael Lorenzen tossed 6.0 innings at Triple-A before being called back up, but a reliever does not need to be stretched out over any length of time.
Mickey Moniak feeling good
Another Angels player to make their return from an injury is outfielder Mickey Moniak, who had a fractured finger and ultimately missed about one month. Immediately upon returning, he continued to make an impact with his bat, the way he was doing in the few games he played before his injury.