NEW YORK -- Cody Bradford was arguably the Rangers’ best starting pitcher when he landed on the injured list on April 14.

At that time, he had a 1.40 ERA in 19 1/3 innings across three starts. He was holding opposing batters to a .145/.169/.203 slash line, and he had 17 strikeouts to just two walks before a back injury landed him on the shelf for an extended period of time.

On Saturday evening at Yankee Stadium, Bradford took the mound and looked exactly like that version of himself. The lefty allowed just one run on five hits and no walks in five innings. He struck out seven Yankees to complete the best of his three appearances since returning from the injured list as the Rangers cruised to a 9-4 win in Game 2 of the doubleheader. Texas lost Game 1, 8-0.

“Today was a real dream coming true, getting to pitch at Yankee Stadium,” Bradford said postgame. “Growing up as a Rangers fan and seeing them beat the Yankees in the playoffs in the 2010 ALCS, it was a real dream come true. I tried to just come in kind of below my baseline. That’s something that Max [Scherzer] told me last year, and just be me.”

While Texas’ offensive outburst was notable, it wasn’t all that shocking for a club that has been up and down all season. The more important development is Bradford looking like a quality big league pitcher once again while the rotation continues to be decimated by injuries.

“Great focus, that’s who he is,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “It’s a tough lineup; to hold them down to one run in five innings, I mean, what a terrific job.

“I see it so many times with him; it’s just how well he prepares. He has a game plan and he makes adjustments in the dugout. He doesn't try to power his way through a lineup. But he uses all four quadrants. He's got a really good idea of what he wants to do. He goes out there, and now he's at a stage, I think, where it's easier for him to execute those pitches because he’s had the reps.”

Bradford often takes notes in the dugout during games and leading into his starts. One of the biggest things for him as he continues to work back from the back injury is being able to stay aligned down the mound.

This start was the first time he finally felt synced up.

“There's always little mechanical tweaks,” Bradford explained. “When my line toward home plate is really good, I tend to work the glove side well. For me, being able to execute fastballs in to righties is a really big advantage, because it opens up the outer half of the plate. Coming back from rehab, I think getting to the glove side was one of the last things to come back.”

It has come back in full force now.

The plan initially was for Bradford to go to the bullpen after his return from the injured list, with little time for him to get stretched back out to a starter’s workload. But plans changed when both Scherzer and Jon Gray landed on the injured list shortly after the July 30 Trade Deadline, when Texas shipped out Michael Lorenzen to Kansas City.

Bradford allowed five runs in two relief innings in his return against the Cardinals on July 30, and then three runs in 3 2/3 innings in a start against the Red Sox on Aug. 3. By the time he took the mound at Yankee Stadium on Saturday, he felt like the rust had been knocked off and he was a full go.

“I’m not big on speaking things into existence,” Bradford said. “I don't quite believe in that at all, but I think the Lord can grant you just patience and confidence, and I think a quiet confidence is what I'm trying to exude.”