Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Taj Bradley lost his second consecutive start on Monday against the Chicago Cubs. Despite taking the loss, Bradley put together an impressive performance. He went five and two thirds innings pitched and struck out eight while allowing a run on three hits.
This was the fourth time that Bradley has recorded seven or more strikeouts in his six starts so far this season.
Tay Bradley Looking Formidable In Rookie Season
The young phenom will have some outings where he did all he could do and might still end up taking the loss, but we know that the Rays are in good hands when this brother is on the mound. Bradley could not get any run support from his team on Monday as they weren’t able to score.
This marks Bradley’s second loss in a row, as he took the loss back on May 23 against the Toronto Blue Jays. In that game he gave up a season-high four earned runs on nine hits while striking out seven.
Rays manager Kevin Cash had nothing but good things to say about Bradley’s recent performance.
“Super pleased with Taj,” Cash said in an article from mlb.com. “Mixed all of his pitches, had the fastball and the cutter really going a lot. Broke out a couple changeups to lefties, but a lot of power.”
“It’s pretty cool when he’s sitting at 95, 96 [mph], and then when he needs to reach back, he can go ahead and get 99. Really, really pleased with the way Taj threw the ball.”
The Numbers Talk For Taj
In his first MLB season, Bradley has put together some really good outings. On the season he has a 3-2 record with a 3.60 ERA and 42 strikeouts. The future looks bright for the Rays organization and right now they can contend for a World Series appearance, and with Bradley can certainly make an impact as the season progresses.
As a rookie starting pitcher, a lot can go through your mind when you’re out there on the mound. For Bradley, he just goes out there and does what he loves to do.
“Don’t try to do too much,” Bradley said of his mindset. “You’re trying to learn on the go. If you try to change so much while you’re playing the game, it just becomes out of whack. So I just go back to what I was doing. If I need to expand, I can, but don’t try to go so much out of the zone.”
There’s a reason why Bradley was the Rays top prospect. His ability to dominate the zone and make it difficult for hitters to have success against him is very impressive. And he will only get better as time goes on.
This MLBbro could be a Black Ace in a few years, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he’s in consideration for a Cy Young award in that time too. Bradley’s first season will definitely be one to remember and who knows, he could become a World Series champion as a rookie.
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