The Los Angeles Dodgers officially reinstated Brandon McCarthy from the 60-day disabled list prior to Friday’s series opener against the San Francisco Giants. McCarthy will pitch in relief over the remaining nine games of the season.
That will serve as test in some regard for the right-hander, as Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and the front office makes final evaluations for the 25-man postseason roster. McCarthy had been on the DL since July 24 (retroactive to July 21) with a blister on the third finger of his right hand.
He pitched five innings and allowed three runs on seven hits, while collecting four strikeouts against one walk in a third and final rehab start for High-A Rancho Cucamonga. It came against the Lancaster JetHawks (Colorado Rockies affiliate) in Game 3 of their playoff series.
McCarthy went three hitless innings and recorded two strikeouts, but also issued three walks in his first start for the Quakes. The 34-year-old was not pleased with the results, which led to another outing.
McCarthy did fare any better as he allowed seven runs (five earned) on eight hits in just 3.2 innings, suffering the loss. He was transferred to the 60-day disabled list on Sept. 4 in order to create room on the 40-man roster for Charlie Culberson.
In 16 starts for the Dodgers, he’s 6-4 with a 3.84 ERA and 1.23 WHIP. Along with battling blister trouble, McCarthy was bothered by tendinitis in his right knee since Spring Training. He didn’t use either injury as excuse or reason for a subpar stretch of starts that preceded his stint on the disabled list.
When auditioning for a potential role out of the bullpen come the 2016 playoffs, McCarthy failed to retire any of his six batters faced and allowed six runs on five hits. The Sept. 30 outing was his last time pitching in 2016.
To create room for McCarthy on their 40-man roster, the Dodgers placed Josh Ravin on the 60-day disabled, retroactive to Sept. 18, with an abdomen strain.
