The Los Angeles Dodgers signed veteran starter Brandon McCarthy to a four-year, $48 million deal before the 2015 season, but through his first two seasons, the Dodgers did not get much out of him as he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2015.
McCarthy came into Spring Training in 2017 and looked to earn a spot in the rotation to begin the season, and he did exactly that.
The 34-year-old got off to a good start to the season, as he posted ERAs below 4.0 in each of the first three months of the season. Injuries then became an issue for the right-hander as he suffered a shoulder injury in the weight room and then dealt with blisters in his throwing arm, limiting him to just five games (two starts) after the All-Star break.
Overall on the season, McCarthy went 6-4 with a 3.98 ERA, 3.28 FIP and 1.25 WHIP in 19 games (16 starts). He struck out 72 and walked 27 in 92.2 innings of work, which was the most for him since 2014.
While McCarthy was unable to make it back into the rotation late in the season, he did prove to be a capable reliever and despite being left off the roster in both the National League Division and Championship Series’, he found his way onto the club’s World Series roster as a reliever.
He made one appearance in Game 2, and gave up two hits and two runs to the Houston Astros in the 11th inning, suffering the loss after giving up a home run to George Springer.
2017 Highlight:
McCarthy had three different starts on the season in which he threw six shutout innings, and surprisingly two of them came against the defending World Series Champion Chicago Cubs.
In his second start of the season on April 12, McCarthy allowed just four hits and three walks while blanking the Cubs at Wrigley Field and earning victory.
Then on May 27 at Dodger Stadium he did the same, allowing just two hits that time and earning another win.
2018 Outlook:
McCarthy still has one year remaining on his contract, and while the Dodgers may attempt to trade him, they probably wouldn’t be able to get much for him.
So McCarthy will go into Spring Training in 2018 in the same spot he was a year ago, looking to earn a spot in the Opening Day rotation. Whether it’s as a starter or reliever, McCarthy should once again eat some innings in 2018 if he can stay healthy.
