Minnesota
Twins Starting Pitcher, Brad Radke, was born October
27, 1972, in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. He graduated
from Jesuit High School of Tampa (FL) where he
was known as a scholar-athlete playing both baseball
and basketball. Brad was drafted by the Twins
in the 8th round in 1991. He was not considered
a top prospect, but once settled in the Majors,
he was valued highly and the Twins were offered
a large amount of talent for him, but they never
gave him up. He was only was 22 years old when
he broke into the big leagues on April 29, 1995.
Brad has been in the Twins organization for almost
15 years and on the major league team for almost
10 years.
In his debut season, he finished 11-14 with a 5.32 ERA.
It was not a great start, and he vowed to improve as
a pitcher. He did just that in the next two years. In
1997, he finished an excellent season with a 20-10 record
and a 3.87 ERA. He finished the year with 239 innings
pitched, 4th most in the league.
For the past 9 years, he has been known as one of the
most consistent pitchers in the game. Besides his debut
season (5.32), he never finished above a 5.00 ERA. Besides
his 2004 season (3.48), he has never finished below a
3.50 ERA. In his career, he is a solid 127-118 with an
overall ERA of 4.23.
Based purely on how he threw the
ball, Brad Radke may have had his best season
as a pro in 2004. Yet, a lack of run support and
the Twins' strange propensity to lose close games
that he started cost him an 18-20 win season.
He is known for being one of the best control
pitchers of the modern era, walking an average
of only 41 batters a year, in an average of 34
games a year.
Brad relies on a precisely thrown 90-MPH fastball,
but his best pitch is his changeup. He can throw
the changeup with the same arm speed and motion
as his fastball. It comes in at roughly 78 MPH.
While Johan Santana's changeup causes hitters
to swing and miss, Brad Radke often gets pop-ups
and flyballs with his. He also throws a slider
that plays well off his fastball. He is definitely
at his best when he delivers well-located fastballs
to get ahead in the count and then uses his changeup
as an out pitch. His combination of control and
determination to avoid walks means he gives up
a few home runs, but few big innings.
A good athlete with exceptional
composure, Brad Radke fields his position successfully
and makes good decisions with the ball. That includes
bunting situations, which aren't commonplace in
the American League. He also holds runners well.
Being in the AL, inter-league play has only forced
him to bat 23 times. He has 3 hits, a .130 batting
average. He has 0 walks, but 2 sacrifice hits.
Brad is the kind of pitcher for whom the quality-start
statistic was invented. Even when he lacks his
best stuff, he's capable of pitching seven innings
and allowing just two or three runs. Although
he has won more than 12 games only three times,
he's the kind of smart, put-it-in-play pitcher
who can win 18 to 20 games if he stays healthy
and receives good fielding and run support from
his team. He was on the 1998 All-Star team, and
is ranked 7th in the league for strikeouts and
16th in strikeout to walk ratio. He is second
on the Twins' All-Time list in games started and
third in innings pitched, strikeouts and wins.
Despite troubling shoulder injuries, Brad Radke
should be ready for 2006. If he can remain strong
and durable he should be a cornerstone in the
Twins bullpen.
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