Cody Bradford

Amateur career

Bradford attended Aledo High School in Aledo, Texas, and during his senior season in 2016 he produced a 0.64 ERA with 87 strikeouts over 66 innings. In his freshman season of 2017 he appeared in 15 games, posting a 5–5 record with a 5.52 ERA and 43 strikeouts over 73 1/3 innings. His sophomore season of 2018 saw a 7–6 record with a 2.51 ERA and 87 strikeouts over 96 2/3 innings.

That year he also appeared in two games for the Chatham Anglers of the Cape Cod League, posting a 2.25 ERA over 8 innings, and was named to the 2018 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team, where he posted a 1–0 record with a 0.00 ERA and 5 strikeouts over 5 innings. Bradford was named the 2018 Big 12 Conference Baseball Pitcher of the Year. He appeared in 3 games for Baylor in 2019 before being shut down due to injury; he underwent surgery for Thoracic outlet syndrome on March 27 and missed the rest of the season.

Professional career

The Texas Rangers selected Cody Bradford in the sixth round of the 2019 MLB draft, 175th overall, and he signed for a $700,000 bonus, which was $418,000 above the recommended slot value. The 2020 minor league season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so Bradford did not play that year.

He began 2021 with the Hickory Crawdads in High-A East, where he had a 4–4 record, a 4.23 ERA, and 87 strikeouts in 67 2/3 innings. In August, he moved up to the Frisco RoughRiders in Double-A Central, posting a 2–0 record with a 3.89 ERA and 41 strikeouts over 34 2/3 innings across seven games. He spent the 2022 season back with Frisco, finishing 10–7 with a 5.01 ERA and 124 strikeouts in 118 2/3 innings.

In 2023, Bradford received a non-roster invitation to major league spring training and started the season with the Round Rock Express in Triple-A Pacific Coast League. He was named PCL Pitcher of the Month for April after going 5–0 with a 0.64 ERA in five starts. On May 15, 2023, the Rangers selected his contract and called him up to the majors for the first time, starting him that day against the Atlanta Braves.

In his debut, he gave up six runs over five innings. Over 20 games (eight starts) in his rookie season, he had a 4–3 record, a 5.30 ERA, and 51 strikeouts in 56 innings. After the season, he won the PCL Pitcher of the Year Award.

Bradford began 2024 in the Rangers’ rotation, going 3–0 with a 1.40 ERA in three starts. On April 14, 2024, he went on the injured list with back soreness, which was later diagnosed as a rib stress fracture on April 26. He was moved to the 60-day injured list on May 23 and activated on July 29.

He finished the season with a 6–3 record in 13 starts, a 3.54 ERA, and 70 strikeouts in his innings pitched. To start 2025, Bradford was placed on the injured list with a left elbow sprain, transferred to the 60-day injured list on April 8, 2025, and on June 24 it was announced he would have season-ending elbow surgery, later specified as internal brace surgery. On August 5, 2026, he was activated from the injured list ahead of his season debut and return from surgery.

Did You Know?

• He graduated from Baylor University in 2019 with a degree in supply chain management.
• He married his wife, Madi, in December 2019.