Christmas came early for fans in Aberdeen, who watched Kyle Bradish return to the mound for the first time since 2024. <\/p>\n
Bradish threw 37 pitches in a festive \u201cChristmas in July\u201d game against the Winston-Salem Dash. Across two innings, he recorded four strikeouts and one walk while allowing two hits and one earned run. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was awesome to see him back out there on the mound,\u201d IronBirds manager Ryan Goll said. \u201cHaven\u2019t watched him throw live for a while, so it\u2019s kind of fun to see him back out there with some of his quality stuff that he\u2019s always had.\u201d <\/p>\n
Bradish allowed the run in the second inning after a ball rocketed past Aberdeen\u2019s diving second baseman. Though Bradish had allowed the runner on base with a walk, it\u2019s hard to say if an Orioles fielder would\u2019ve made the play to keep him from advancing. <\/p>\n
At times, his pitches seemed elevated. After one high pitch, Bradish jumped off the mound and clenched his jaw in frustration as the umpire called it a ball. <\/p>\n
Walking off the mound for the final time, he bit his jersey before exchanging a word or two with catcher Chadwick Tromp, another Oriole recovering from his own (back) injury. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to be again comfort with [his pitches], but ultimately what he showed, it\u2019s kind of more back to his normal stuff of what he had previously,\u201d Goll said. \u201cSo it\u2019s pretty cool to see what he did and, yeah, definitely had the swing-and-miss profile, and that\u2019s been his key thing.\u201d <\/p>\n
Bradish\u2019s start marked a strong step forward since the trouble began. In February 2024, Bradish was diagnosed with a right elbow sprain. <\/p>\n
After he was activated in May 2024, it seemed as though the worst was in the past. Bradish\u2019s ERA was 2.75, and he allowed only two homers in 39 1\/3 innings. <\/p>\n
However, about a month later, the Orioles announced he had undergone Tommy John surgery to reconstruct his UCL. <\/p>\n
He\u2019s been working his way back ever since: his first bullpen session in April, facing live hitters at the end of June and now finding his way through the minor leagues. <\/p>\n
The step-by-step process to work back to Major League Baseball is an arduous one as Bradish brushes off the rust with each appearance. <\/p>\n