Southern League most outstanding pitcher, Archie Bradley, focused on winning a championship

The Southern League announced Tuesday that Mobile BayBears’ starting pitcher Archie Bradley was named the league’s Most Outstanding Pitcher for the 2013 season. However the Arizona Diamondbacks’ top prospect was moments away from playing quarterback for the Sooners of Oklahoma. It is a decision that he still thinks about to this day.

“I think about it a lot,” Bradley said. “I definitely made the right decision. I will be at almost every home game this offseason down in Norman. I keep in touch with Josh Heupel, the offensive coordinator, and a bunch of the guys that play there. It’s on my mind, but I’m glad I picked what I did.”

There is no question Arizona is happy that Bradley chose the diamond over the gridiron. The hurler has a career 26-11 record with a 2.76 ERA in three professional seasons.

Bradley made his first start at Double-A on May 2 after beginning the season with High-A Visalia. The Muskogee, Okla. native ranked among the Southern League leaders in wins (12, first), strikeouts per nine innings (8.68, first) and ERA (1.97, second) in 21 starts.

The lone knock on the No. 7 prospect in all of baseball, according to MLB.com, is his command. The right-hander walked 4.31 batters per nine innings, including games where he walked as many as seven. While bases on balls may have affected his inning total, it did not harm his earned run average as much as one may think.

“Walks really aren’t an issue to me unless they score,” Bradley said. “I feel like I’ve done a pretty good job of keeping those guys from scoring. Walks have kind of gone up a little bit, but it’s just something I’m trying to refine a little in the bullpens.”

Watching the Florida state game tonight gets me thinking and kinda wishing I woulda played football! Made the right choice, but what if…

— Archie Bradley (@ArchieBradley7) September 3, 2013

Of pitchers to make at least 21 starts since May 2, only two players have a lower ERA than Bradley’s 1.97 mark. The success of the 21-year-old has prompted rumors that the Diamondbacks may call him up to the big leagues at any moment.

“I feel like if you ask any of our guys, they feel like they’re ready,” Bradley said about the top pitching staff in the Southern League in 2013. “You have to think that way. I’m just worried about here. I want to win a Southern League title. I’m really happy with where I’m at and where our team is at. It’s really fun to be a part of this team.”

Mobile has won back-to-back Southern League titles and finished with a league-best 79-60 record. While a call to the show may still be in the works for the 2013 season, Bradley remains focused on winning a championship at Double-A.

“I think you deal with it by just understanding that it’s nothing you can control,” Bradley said of the chance to pitch in the majors. “The only you can do is go out there and pitch. My pitching coach here, Dan Carlson, has helped me out a bunch with that. None of that is in my control. It doesn’t matter if I go out there and throw a hundred scoreless innings, it’s still up to them. I just need to worry about my day-to-day activities and the rest will take care of itself.”

Bradley will start game one of the Southern League Championship Series Thursday night for Mobile with no thought in his mind of reading defenses or a major league debut. The former first round pick will be locked in trying to help the BayBears to a third straight Southern League crown.

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To stay current with all the latest news, follow Smokies on Radio on Twitter and like the Smokies on Radio Facebook page. Michael Wottreng is a Broadcast and Multimedia Assistant for the Smokies Radio Network. You can follow Michael on Twitter here: @MWottreng