Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
January 30, 2006
McCarthy to Relieve

Brandon McCarthy of the Chicago White Sox is working to be a 200 inning starter, but he's most likely to start in the bullpen come April.

Though McCarthy, 22, is preparing this off-season as if he's going to start, he said at SoxFest over the weekend that he would adjust if relegated to relief duty.

"Last year I was in a reliever's role with training wheels," said the 6-foot-7-inch McCarthy, who said he has intensified his weight workouts and now weighs 205 pounds, up from 190 last season.

"It's a lot different being ready every day and having to go into a game on three batters' notice.

"I think I'm more comfortable [with a relief role] than last year."

His pitching coach notes the importance of depth:

Pitching coach Don Cooper said last month that McCarthy would be used in spring training as a starter and then pitch a couple of relief outings--if the rest of the staff remained healthy.

It's seldom that a team can get by a full season with just five starters. With injuries and the possibility that one of the five won't perform well, McCarthy is likely to see more starts than relief appearances in 2006.


Posted by David Pinto at 07:38 AM | Pitchers | TrackBack (0)
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