Pirates Notebook: McDonald relishes chance
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Pitcher James McDonald is scheduled to make his first start with the Pirates today.
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James McDonald will make his first start for the Pirates today, five days removed from being acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Octavio Dotel trade.
He will do so with a three-pitch repertoire -- fastball up to 95 mph, curveball and changeup -- plus a slider in progress. He also will do so with a 6-foot-5, 195-pound frame that is lankier than that of most starters. Neither of those fits the prototype, but ...
"We like James' three-pitch mix with a chance to develop his slider," general manager Neal Huntington said. "His fastball has average to above-average velocity with downhill plane. His curveball has shown sharpness to the break. He has shown feel for his changeup with solid deception. He has shown the ability to throw all three pitches for strikes. The slider has flashed quality at times and, at other times, has been more of a slurve."
As for the frame ...
"There is no single body type for starting pitchers. We like James' athleticism, his height, how his arm works and his pitch repertoire to give him a chance to become a major league starting pitcher."
McDonald, a 25-year-old right-hander, has gone 26-23 with a 3.40 in 93 minor league appearances, including 79 starts. In 53 appearances with the Dodgers, only five of them starts, he went 5-6 with a 4.11 ERA, with a good strikeout rate of 63 in 76 2/3 innings, but an unsightly 40 walks and .262 opponents' batting average.
He was the Dodgers' Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2007 and '08, and he pitched 5 1/3 scoreless innings in the National League Championship series in the latter year after a September recall. He opened 2009 in the major-league rotation but an 8.78 ERA through four starts landed him in the bullpen.
"My confidence was down at the beginning of last year, but I came back and did really well," McDonald said. "Confidence is the one thing nobody can take from you."
First Published August 5, 2010 12:00 am
