Lost in the excitement of a 25th come-from-behind win this season for the Los Angeles Dodgers was a shaky outing by Brandon McCarthy in which he failed to complete five innings. The start was his second since returning from a stint on the disabled list due to knee tendinitis.
While that was the official diagnosis, the Dodgers put the right-hander on the DL one day after he appeared to suffer from similar command troubles that surfaced last season. McCarthy missed his location on several instances Friday night, though did manage to limit the Miami Marlins to one run through three innings.
That was despite plenty of hard contact early. After scoring one run in the fourth on a pair of two-out hits, the Marlins got to McCarthy for three runs in the fifth. The last of which came on a Justin Bour two-run double.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts made a mound visit before leaving McCarthy in the game to face the Marlins’ slugging first baseman. McCarthy was removed after allowing the go-ahead extra-base hit.
He told Alanna Rizzo of SportsNet LA there was some solace in not putting the Dodgers in a deep hole, but was otherwise unhappy with the start:
“It wasn’t very good. Just not good enough, but fortunately not bad enough to set us behind and make it a game that was unwinnable.”
McCarthy added he appreciated the trust Roberts had in him, before again putting the onus on himself to pitch better:
“It’s nice. I need to execute and be able to do something to get him out. When you’re leaving me a situation that’s high-leverage, I need to be able to get us through that. Unfortunately, I didn’t do it.”
McCarthy didn’t factor into the decision for a third straight start, but did see his ERA climb to 3.38. The 11-year veteran nonetheless is in the midst of arguably his best season.
With an upcoming off day, McCarthy is in position to receive at least one extra day of rest before his next start. The Dodgers presumably will continue to keep a watchful eye on the 34-year-old who’s failed to complete five innings in three of his past seven starts.
