Bradley shows 1st outing no fluke

SAN FRANCISCO — Right-hander Archie Bradley turned in another solid start on Thursday night, leaving the game with a lead in the seventh inning against Giants lefty Madison Bumgarner after starting his career by beating Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw last weekend.

The results — just two runs allowed in 122⁄ innings — speak for themselves, but what makes Bradley’s outings even more impressive is he hasn’t given up much in the way of hard contact.

Bradley has allowed just one extrabase hit, a double by the Dodgers’ Howie Kendrick that was perhaps the only particularly hard-hit ball in his two starts.

He’s been getting results by predominantly mixing two pitches, a fastball that has averaged between 92-93 mph and biting curveball.

Giants hitters were impressed by Bradley’s poise, but they also mentioned his ability to keep the ball down.

“He might have missed a couple of times, but he was throwing that pitch low a lot,” outfielder Gregor Blanco said. “Even the curveball, everything was low. That’s why he had the success he has.”

Another factor seems to be the way Bradley’s fastball plays.

“He’s got some life,” Blanco said. “It’s a little bit of a sneaky fastball.”

Said Diamondbacks pitching coach Mike Harkey: “He’s pitching at 90-93, but it’s playing a lot harder than it is because he’s got good life and he’s pitching down in the zone. As long as he does that, he’s going to be fine.”

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