It had been 438 days since Kyle Bradish had stood on a mound in the big leagues.
As the adrenaline filled his veins, heart racing as cheers filled the air, Bradish stared down his first batter and unleashed a 96.8 mph fastball. It was a ball, but the first one was out of the way.
After 10 pitches and two strikeouts, Bradish completed the first big league inning in his return from Tommy John Surgery. Seeing the 6-foot-3 frame standing on the mound going straight through opposing batters was reminiscent of 2024 before he went down for the season.
Bradish was locked in for most of the evening. The two-seamer was on point, and his slider was nastier than ever as he worked it with precision.
Except for two mistakes (both solo home runs on hanging pitches to Trevor Story and David Hamilton), Bradish looked like the ace of old.
He would walk off the mound after six innings, throwing 81 pitches, 51 for strikes (63%), and allowing four hits while striking out 10. It was a quality start, something that is quite normal in a Bradish outing, after 438 days away from an MLB mound.
His velocity was where it should be, as he averaged 94.9 mph with his sinker and 94.3 with his four-seamer. He maxed out at 97.5 mph on a sinker, showing no fear and not holding back once.
“We haven’t seen stuff like that out of the rotation all year,” O’s interim manager Tony Mansolino said in his post-game press conference. “Now, we’ve got guys with good stuff. But Bradish, if he stays healthy, it’s ace-type stuff. It’s ace-type pitchability. It’s absolutely an ace mentality.”
Unfortunately, the offense wasn’t as fired up as Bradish or the crowd, as the Red Sox were able to blank the Birds. However, the night was all about Bradish.
It was about being able to return to the mound and return to the form that was turning him into a true ace. It was to provide momentum for 2026, as both Bradish and Trevor Rogers look to lead the starting rotation together.
Bradish (0-1) might have been dinged with a loss, as the Birds dropped the game 5-0, but in the end, the Orioles, fans and most of all Bradish himself, all came out big winners in a lost season.
“There were definitely a lot of emotions just throughout the whole day,” Bradish said. “A lot of nerves as the game got closer, and just looking back at kind of the journey I’ve been on the past 14 months to get back to where I am here. So, it was just a lot, and just really tried to manage that. Obviously, I was amped up the first inning, but felt like I was able to control them and settle in and get through whatever it was.”
The ace is back, as Kyle Bradish looks back to his old ways.
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