Taj Bradley
Breakdown
Performance
NewsPowered by
Powered by
April 3, 2026
Shines in scoreless outing
Bradley (1-0) earned the win Thursday against the Royals, allowing five hits and one walk while striking out three over six scoreless innings.
Analysis
Bradley worked through a few early threats but managed to keep Kansas City off the board, showcasing his ability to pitch out of trouble. The right-hander's biggest moment came in the third inning, when he rebounded from a dropped foul popup by striking out Bobby Witt with a 100 mph fastball -- the hardest pitch thrown by a Twins starter in the pitch-tracking era -- to escape the jam. The 25-year-old righty was also efficient enough to reach the six-inning mark, tossing 65 of 100 pitches for strikes. Coming off a season in which he posted a 5.05 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 127 strikeouts over 142.2 innings, Bradley is off to a red-hot start to 2026 and continues to justify Minnesota's decision to acquire him from Tampa Bay at last year's trade deadline.
March 28, 2026
Strikes out nine over 4.1 innings
Bradley allowed one run on three hits and three walks across 4.1 innings in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Orioles. He struck out nine.
Analysis
Bradley won a spot in the Twins' rotation during spring training and continued racking up the strikeouts against Baltimore. His fastball remained up compared to 2025, as he averaged 97.4 mph in Saturday's outing compared to 96.2 mph from a season ago. However, walks remain an issue, contributing to Bradley being unable to get deep enough into the game to pick up the win. Bradley's next start should line up for Friday's home opener against his former team, the Rays.