Phillies reliever Archie Bradley has been out of action since April 10 after injuring a muscle in his left oblique, but he could be back on the mound at Citizens Bank Park following the team’s upcoming nine-game road trip.

Bradley, who signed a one-year, $6 million deal with the Phillies back in January, is a key piece of the team’s revamped bullpen. His absence has been felt.

After getting off to a fast start over the first week of the season, the Phillies’ bullpen currently sports a bottom-third 4.40 ERA, although the group was instrumental in preserving last night’s 5-4 win over the Brewers.

Bradley has thrown just three innings over four appearances this season.

Initially, the Phillies expected him to miss 3-4 weeks, but that timeline was delayed after Bradley developed a severe cold, causing a disruption to his rehab process. Because of Major League Baseball’s COVID-19 protocols, Bradley had to stay away from the team for a number of days while he didn’t fell well.

“I mean, realistically, it probably set me back about a week. I probably could have been ready for this road trip had I not gotten sick,” Bradley said. “On top of that, dealing with the oblique, I was coughing and sneezing a lot, which kind of re-aggravated the oblique a little bit, or didn’t allow it to heal.”

Bradley, who noted he hasn’t been on the injured list since his rookie year, will head to Lehigh when the team departs for Atlanta this weekend.

According to Bradley, the tentative plan is for him to throw one or two bullpen sessions before getting game action next week. That would put him on track to return when the Phillies host the Marlins on May 18.

“I think it’s public knowledge, I don’t know yet, but I think the plan is for when we get back from this road trip.”