Who is Cody Bradford? Know all about Rangers top prospect following his MLB debut

Cody Bradford's announcement to start in the game against the Atlanta Braves was a breakthrough for a guy who has had his fair share of battles in his short career so far. After persevering through high school with injuries and a delayed professional debut, an MLB start must have given him a sense of achievement.

The 25-year-old left hander is a Texas-local out of Aledo, a small town just 35 minutes away from the Rangers' base at Arlington. He had impressive high school apperances in senior season, recording a 0.64 ERA in 66 innings. However he was ignored during the MLB Draft pick and made his way to play collegiate baseball for Baylor University.

Playing for the Baylor University Bears, Bradford shone in his sophomore year getting an ERA of 2.51 and being named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Year. But his career seemed to hit a halt when he had to go through surgery for Thoraic Outlet Syndrome, a disease that causes compression in the nerves, arteries or vein in the thoraic aperture. He missed the majority of the 2019 season in the process.

But luckily Cody Bradford's sophomore season was enough to impress the Rangers as they selected him as the 6th round pick in the 2019 MLB season. He was supposed to make his professional debut by 2020, but the pandemic again halted progress and much like many others he missed his cut for making it to the A-league workouts.

Cody Bradford's impressive 2023 season

Cody Bradford made his way through the minors playing for Hickory and Frisco. In the 2023 season playing for Round Rock he posted a 5-0 record in his first five starts and was the reigning Pitcher of The Month when he was called up by the Rangers.

Even though his debut didn't go as planned as he conceded a loss and was taken for six runs, there's a lot of heart in the Aledo-born pitcher who will surely hope to make it big in the majors.