By Tim Morris
Brad Brach has reached the pinnacle of Major League baseball.
The former Freehold Township High School and Monmouth University star pitcher, now pitching for the Baltimore Orioles, was selected to play for the American League squad in the All-Star Game on July 12 at PetCo Park in San Diego.
It will be a homecoming or sorts for Brach. He was drafted out of college by the Padres and made his Major League debut with San Diego in 2011.
The 6-6 Brach, a right-hander, is a late-inning relief pitcher who is having a tremendous year for the Orioles. He is 5-1 and pitching to a 0.94 ERA with 53 strikeouts in 45.2 innings. He also has two saves.
The bullpen has been a big reason why Baltimore sits in first place in the American League East Division heading into the All-Star Game. And Brach has been a big part of Baltimore’s success.
The selection to the All-Star Game is the culmination of a long journey that began in the Freehold Township Little League for the pitcher. He had a great high school career, leading the Patriots to the Shore Conference A North Division title and a berth in the NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group IV title game as a senior.
Brach went on to have a stellar collegiate career at Monmouth where he set numerous school records, including career victories (29) and strikeouts (277). He guided Monmouth to the Northeast Conference title in 2007. The pitcher was twice First Team All-NEC and was named the NEC Pitcher of the Year in 2007.
He was drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 42nd round of the 2008 Major League Draft. Brach worked his way up through San Diego’s minor league organization, starring at every level until he was brought up to the Major League club in August of 2011.
Brach was traded to the Orioles in 2014, where has been a big part of the bullpen ever since. He was 7-1 in ’14 when Baltimore won the East Division title.
Todd Smith, the head coach at Freehold Township, said “his hard work, determination, and quiet confidence have led him to this point.”
Smith has talked to the former Patriot after he learned of his selection to the All-Star Game.
“He is very excited to say the least,” said Smith. “He knew his performance up to this point put him in the mix to be selected but he was not sure if he would be selected because he is not a starter or closer. So he was cautiously optimistic.
“Once he found out he made it he was thrilled. He is very honored to be apart of the entire experience with the best players in the game. He respects the game of baseball and plays it the correct way so something like this means a lot more to him. He understands how special it is and how fortunate he is to be associated with the All-Star Game so he plans to just enjoy all of it as much as he can and take it all in.
