After transferring from Muskogee High School to Broken Arrow Senior High School before his junior year, Bradley quickly became the starting quarterback on the school's varsity football team and a starting pitcher for the baseball team. After his junior year, Bradley was named to the 2010 Aflac All-American Baseball Classic roster. In 2011, during his senior season, he led the team to a 36–2 record and its first 6A State Championship since 1991. In the championship game against the Rams of Owasso High School, Bradley struck out 14 batters and allowed just two hits over seven innings in a 4–0 win. He finished his senior season with a 12–1 record, allowing just three earned runs in 71 innings, walking 11 batters and striking out 133. Bradley was expected to be drafted in the first round of the 2011 draft. He committed to play both football and baseball at the University of Oklahoma, but due to his high draft status, eventually signed a professional baseball contract after the Arizona Diamondbacks drafted him in the first round of the 2011 MLB draft. ESPN baseball insider, Keith Law, ranked Bradley as the number nine prospect in the 2011 draft.
Professional career
Minor Leagues
On August 15, 2011, with only minutes left until the signing deadline, Bradley signed a contract with the Diamondbacks for $5 million, to be spread out over five years due to his two-sport abilities. Instead of going to college to play both football and baseball, he was sent to Arizona for workouts at the rookie level before being sent to the Arizona League. Prior to the 2012 season, he was ranked as the 25th-best prospect in baseball by Baseball America. Bradley made his professional debut in 2012 with the South Bend Silver Hawks and spent the whole season there, going 12-6 with a 3.84 ERA in 27 starts. In 2013, he pitched for the Visalia Rawhide and the Mobile BayBears where he compiled a combined 14-5 record and a 1.84 ERA in 26 total starts between both teams, and in 2014, he pitched for both the Reno Aces and Mobile. In five starts for Reno, he was 1-4 with a 5.18 ERA, and in 12 starts for Mobile, he was 2-3 with a 4.12 ERA.
Arizona Diamondbacks
In 2015, Bradley made the Diamondbacks opening day roster. He made the start in his MLB debut on April 11, 2015 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Bradley pitched 6 shutout innings, giving up 1 hit and 4 walks, and striking out 6. He also got his first major league hit, a single. Bradley defeated 2014 Cy Young Award winner, and 2014 NL MVP, Clayton Kershaw in the 6-0 Diamondbacks win, becoming the fifth rookie pitcher to make his first start against a Cy Young winner since 2003, and the fourth to win the game. On April 16 Bradley opposed 2014 World Series MVPMadison Bumgarner becoming the first pitcher in MLB history to face the defending Cy Young Award Winner and the World Series MVP in his first two starts. He earned a no decision in 6 2/3 innings pitched in a Diamondbacks 7-6 win in 12 innings. During a game against the Colorado Rockies on April 28, 2015, Bradley was hit in the face by a line drive off the bat of Carlos González, forcing him to leave the game. The following morning, he was placed on the 15-day disabled list with minor damage to his sinus cavity. Bradley began the 2016 season with Reno, and was recalled and optioned between Reno and Arizona multiple times during the season before he was called up for a final time on May 29. In 26 starts for Arizona, he was 8-9 with a 5.02 ERA. During 2017 spring training, after battling for a spot in the rotation, Bradley lost the competition to Patrick Corbin and would serve as a reliever for the 2017 season in Arizona. Sporting a new thick, wild beard, Bradley flourished in the setup role in 2017. On October 4, 2017, in the 2017 National League Wild Card Round, Bradley hit a 2-run RBI triple to left-center field off of Pat Neshek in an 11-8 Diamondbacks win over the Colorado Rockies. Bradley was the first relief pitcher in Major League history to triple in a postseason game, as well as the sixth pitcher overall. He finished the 2017 season, his first as a relief pitcher, with a 3-3 record and a 1.73 ERA in 63 appearances. The following year, in 2018, Bradley began the season as the setup man. On the season, Bradley finished with an ERA of 3.64 in 76 appearances. He struck out 75 batters in innings. He shared the major league lead in holds, with 34. In 2019, Bradley began as the setup man before taking on the role of closer by midseason. He finished the season with a 4-5 record in 66 games, saving 18 games. He struck out 87 batters in innings.
Scouting report
Bradley is a 6' 4", 225 lb. right-handed pitcher who features a fastball that sits in the 96-97 mph range, topping out around 100 mph. He also throws a knuckle curveball in the low 80s that he describes having 12–6 movement. He also occasionally throws a changeup.
Personal
When Bradley was a starting pitcher, Bradley never considered growing a beard. Contrary to the rumor that Bradley grew his beard at the suggestion of a palm reader, it was actually teammate and fellow pitcher Robbie Ray who suggested Archie grow one. So, at the start of the 2017 spring training, Bradley returned with a lush start to the full, red, beard he now sports. Having experienced such a successful season as one of the best relief pitchers in baseball, Bradley chose to keep his beard, stating, "I don't believe in special powers but it's kind of funny that as soon as I grew a beard I seemed to pitch better. I think it's more to do with having to only pitch 1-2 innings and being able to go 100% versus trying to save my arm to last 6-7 innings as a starter."
