The Los Angeles Dodgers announced they’ve traded T.J. McFarland to the Oakland Athletics for cash considerations. The full terms of the trade were not announced.
McFarland signed a Minor League deal with the Dodgers in the offseason and was part of their non-roster invitees to Spring Training. The left-handed reliever appeared in seven games, posting a 1.35 ERA and 0.60 WHIP with seven strikeouts across 6.2 innings.
Despite his strong spring, it was unlikely the 34-year-old would pitch for the Dodgers anytime soon due to their crowded bullpen with Alex Vesia and Ryan Yarbrough both locked in as the lefties out of the bullpen on the active roster.
McFarland now joins an A’s team with a chance to re-establish himself as a viable option and could be moved once again at the trade deadline to a playoff contender in need of bullpen help.
This marks his second stint with the A’s after pitching 20.2 innings there during the shortened 2020 season where he posted a 4.35 ERA.
McFarland has been in the Majors for parts of 11 seasons, including with the New York Mets last year. Though that only amounted to pitching 1.2 innings over three relief appearances with a 5.40 ERA and 3.00 WHIP.
While pitching at the Triple-A level for both the Mets and Baltimore Orioles organizations last season, McFarland had a combined 2.30 ERA.
He was selected by the then-Cleveland Indians in the fourth round of the 2007 Draft, but made his MLB debut with the Baltimore Orioles in 2013.
McFarland has additionally pitched for the Arizona Diamondbacks and St. Louis Cardinals in his career. He is a lifetime 24-16 with a 4.14 ERA, 4.20 FIP and 1.47 WHIP across 354 games (three starts).
T.J. McFarland career highlights
McFarland posted his best season in 2018 when he threw 72 innings for the Diamondbacks with a 2.00 ERA and 1.19 WHIP. He only struck out 42 hitters that season, but he had a ground ball rate near 67%.
McFarland began to tail off in effectiveness the following season, posting an ERA near five in 56 innings. Since 2020, he’s bounced around the league, partly due to the three-batter minimum taking reducing the need for left-handed specialists.
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