Macay McBride was a major league relief pitcher for three
seasons in the early 21st century.
Joseph Macay McBride was born October 24, 1982, in Sylvania,
Georgia, a small town halfway between Augusta and Savannah, and the county seat
of Screven County. (The internet says he was born in Augusta, but he put
Sylvania on a 2005 questionnaire, so I’m going with that.) He played baseball
and football at Screven County High School, and, during his sophomore year, he
got his first feature article in the Augusta
Chronicle:
Sophomore strikeout king turns heads
By Tim Morse
At first glance, Screven County pitcher Macay McBride doesn’t look overpowering. At 6-foot, 180 pounds, he looks like your ordinary high school pitcher.
But there’s something about the sophomore pitcher when he gets ahead of batters in the count.
“He has a good array of pitches,” said Screven County baseball coach J.T. Pollock. “He has good velocity on his pitches, and his fastballs run away from right-handed hitters, while his breaking ball bites in on them. Therefore it’s hard to look for a particular pitch with that kind of velocity. And of course, he has a good change-up too.”
McBride is just 16, barely old enough to drive a car, and he’s as seasoned on the mound as most high school seniors. In 16 games this season, the left-hander has posted an 11-2 record with two saves, a 1.42 earned run average and a phenomenal 159 strikeouts in just 84 innings, an average of 9.9 strikeouts per outing. His fastball has been clocked in the high 80s. His season high was 16 strikeouts vs. Vidalia on March 20.
McBride leads the Gamecocks into the second round of the Georgia Class AA baseball playoffs on Friday at Thomasville.
He has set the school’s single-season record for strikeouts, breaking the old mark of 107 set in 1987 by James Parker, who went on to play baseball at Georgia College.
McBride has 235 strikeouts in two seasons, just 40 shy of Parker’s school record of 275 established between 1984 and 1987…
But the sophomore doesn’t just focus on his individual accomplishments.
“I like the attention,” he said. “But the team can still win if I’m not pitching. But without the defense, I wouldn’t win.”
If opposing coaches had their way, they’d probably wish they’d never have to face McBride again.
“The only thing I’ve heard (players on the opposing team) say about me is, ‘Man, that’s a nasty curveball,’” McBride said. “Other coaches have asked Coach Pollock stuff like, “Where did he come from?”
McBride has been one of the biggest reasons Screven County won its first region baseball title since 1961 and is in the state playoffs. Since beginning the season at 6-9, the Gamecocks have reeled off 14 consecutive wins…
Macay was named to the second team on the Georgia All-Area
Baseball Team, and in January 2000 he was selected to Collegiate Baseball
magazine’s preseason high school All-American team. Screven County advanced to
the state playoffs again, and Macay made the first team on the All-Area team,
going 11-3 again and lowering his ERA to 1.09 while adding 157 to his strikeout
total; he was also an excellent hitter and played in the outfield when not
pitching. In August he made a non-binding commitment to attend the University
of Georgia on a baseball scholarship, then in November he signed a letter of
intent.
In 2001 Screven County went to the playoffs again, and Macay
won 11 games again, losing just two this time. He raised his strikeouts to 161
and was named the Gatorade State Baseball Player of the Year. On June 5 he was
picked by the Atlanta Braves in the first round of the amateur draft, the 24th
player chosen overall. He had hoped to be taken by the Braves and he received a
$1.34 million bonus to sign with them instead of going to the University of
Georgia.
The Braves sent Macay to the rookie-level Gulf Coast League,
where he had a 3.76 ERA in 55 innings in 13 games, mostly as a starter, with 67
strikeouts and 23 walks. For 2002 he moved up to Macon of the Class A Sally
League, and the Augusta Chronicle
reported on July 24:
Area star stops Jackets
McBride pitches Macon to win against Augusta
By Rob Mueller
The Macon Braves wore their customary road grays Tuesday, but for the man on the mound at Lake Olmstead, this was anything but another road start.
For Macay McBride, the former Screven County High School star, it was homecoming. With the seats filled with his family and friends, McBride didn’t let his boisterous fans down.
Making his first start in Augusta as a Braves farmhand, McBride couldn’t have scripted it any better. He turned in a memorable performance, overpowering the Green Jackets for 7 1/3 innings in a 5-0 win.
Though he already had experienced two homecomings pitching against the Savannah Sand Gnats at Grayson Stadium—about 60 miles from his hometown of Sylvania, Ga.—McBride said pitching in Augusta was extra special.
“I love Augusta, and I played ball here more than anywhere in this area, so it was nice to have family and friends here, and to go out and pitch well for them,” said McBride, the Atlanta Braves’ first-round pick in the 2000 [2001] draft. “Some minor-league games, you come out and nobody’s in the stands, but tonight it was nice to get the adrenaline going.”
McBride relied on the adrenaline rush to supplement his great stuff and excellent command of all four of his pitches Tuesday. He limited the Jackets to just two hits—both singles. He walked two and struck out seven batters en route to his third victory over the Jackets this season…
McBride handcuffed the Jackets with a fastball that touched 93 mph and a good mix of breaking balls and off-speed pitches…
“The thing with Macay is he has great stuff and great makeup and composure, but the thing that makes him special is he’s a competitor,” Macon manager Lynn Jones said. “He’s aggressive and doesn’t back down to hitters. He’s an impressive young pitcher with a very bright future.”
Macay finished the season with a 12-8 record and 2.12 ERA in
157 1/3 innings in 25 starts, with 138 strikeouts and 48 walks, and was named
the league’s most valuable pitcher. In 2003 he was bumped up to the Myrtle
Beach Pelicans of the Carolina League, a higher Class A league; there he had a
9-8 record, a 2.95 ERA, 139 strikeouts and 49 walks in 164 2/3 innings in 27
starts.
In 2004 Macay pitched for the Greenville Braves of the Class
AA Southern League. His ERA went up to 4.44 as he started pitching more out of
the bullpen, starting just 12 of his 38 games, for a total of 103 1/3 innings.
But Atlanta thought enough of him to put him on their 40-man major league
roster over the off-season, and he went to spring training with them in 2005.
In mid-March Macay was optioned to the Mississippi Braves,
the Greenville Braves having moved to Jackson, Mississippi. He had a 3.65 ERA
in 24 2/3 innings in six games (three starts, three relief appearances) when he
was moved up to AAA Richmond on May 10. He was almost exclusively a reliever
for Richmond, where he got off to a rough start but turned it around. He had a
4.33 ERA over 25 appearances as of July 21, at which point he was called up to
Atlanta.
The next night, in Arizona, Macay made his major league
debut, pitching the eighth inning in a ten-inning, 6-5 Braves loss. After fly
outs by pinch-hitter Jose Cruz Jr. and Craig Counsell, he allowed a single to
Royce Clayton before striking out Luis Gonzalez; then he was pinch-hit for by
not-quite-47-year-old Julio Franco, who made his major-league debut the year
Macay was born.
In Macay’s next two appearances he was brought in just to
get a single left-handed hitter out, and he succeeded. Then, on July 29, he got
his first major league save, getting the last two outs in a 2-1 victory.
(Around this time it was reported that Chipper Jones’ nickname for Macay was
“Fat Boy.”) He didn’t give up any earned runs in his first seven appearances,
but then on August he allowed four in 2/3 of an inning, ballooning his ERA to
7.20. After one more appearance the next week, he was optioned back to Richmond
on August 14, in order to make room for a pitcher coming off the disabled list;
but on the 23rd he was called back up after another injury. He
finished the year with a 5.79 ERA in 14 innings in 23 games for Atlanta, and
4.33 in 43 2/3 innings in 25 games for Richmond. Atlanta won their division,
then lost to Houston three games to one in the NLDS; Macay pitched a perfect
ninth inning in game one, a 10-5 loss.
Macay injured his forearm during spring training 2006 and
began the regular season on the disabled list. He pitched in seven games in a
rehab stint in Richmond and Mississippi, then on April 30 was activated on the
major league roster, where he remained for the rest of the season. He appeared
in 71 games, leading the team in that department, with a 3.65 ERA in 56 2/3
innings, one save, 46 strikeouts and 32 walks. The Braves missed the playoffs,
breaking a streak of fourteen straight seasons; a post-season review in the Durham Herald-Sun pointed to the
improved bullpen as a reason for optimism for 2007, with manager Bobby Cox
mentioning Macay in particular.
Over Macay’s first five appearances of 2007 he walked eleven
in three innings, and on April 14 he was sent down to Richmond “to deal with
control problems.” He pitched 23 innings there in seven games, only walking
seven while striking out 24, and had a 3.13 ERA; he was recalled by Atlanta on
May 16. He pitched very well over the next month, then on June 20 he was traded
to Detroit for another left-handed reliever, Wilfredo Ledezma. The Durham Herald-Sun reported on the 21st:
Ledezma dealt to Atlanta for McBride
ATLANTA—The Braves swapped left-handed relievers with Detroit on Wednesday, sending Macay McBride to the Tigers for Wilfredo Ledezma.
If nothing else, the deal was convenient. Ledezma will fly to Atlanta with his former team, which opens a three-game series against the Braves on Friday. McBride will hang out in his native Georgia until his new club arrives.
“It will make the transition easier,” McBride said. “I just have to walk over there” to the visiting clubhouse…
Braves general manager John Schuerholz targeted Ledezma, feeling the bullpen needed a hard-throwing lefty after Mike Gonzalez had a season-ending elbow injury.
“He brings a different look to the bullpen from the left-handed side.” Schuerholz said. “Macay is a young guy who’s still developing his pitching ability. But it’s obvious by our actions that we like Ledezma and his future better.”
McBride first came up to the Braves in 2005 and has gone 6-1 with a 3.99 ERA in 112 games, holding left-handed hitters to a .176 average (28-for-159). He struggled with his control early this season and was sent back to the minors, but had pitched better since his recall on May 16…
Macay pitched 17 2/3 innings in 20 games for the Tigers,
with a 6.11 ERA, then was sent down to their AAA affiliate, the Toledo Mud Hens
of the International League in mid-August; he appeared in five games there and
had a 3.38 ERA in eight innings. His major league ERA for the season, combining
Atlanta and Detroit, was 4.96 in 38 games.
But there was a reason for the off-year. From the Detroit Free Press, January 13, 2008:
MACAY MCBRIDE: In disappointing ’07, Tiger reliever ‘had a little broken bone’ in elbow
Jan. 13—Left-handed Detroit pitcher Macay McBride appeared at Tiger Fest at Comerica Park Saturday. McBride spoke about how a broken bone in his elbow led to a disappointing ’07 season and more.
What he’s been doing during the off-season:
“Oh, it’s been great. We had a little boy this off-season and I’ve just been hanging out with him and having a good time.”
How he’s feeling after injury:
“I’m feeling great. I had a little broken bone in my elbow, obviously it was bothering me last year a little bit. I just didn’t know what it was and found out this off-season what it was. And now I’ve just been working out and hopefully go down to spring training in another week and be ready to go.”
During spring training Tiger manager Jim Leyland started
talking about switching Macay back to starting. From the Detroit News, February 18:
…McBride was a starter in his early days in the Braves organization and pitched well during Class-A stops at Macon (12-8, 2.12 ERA) and Myrtle Beach (9-8, 2.95).
As a starter, he had a four-seam fastball, a change-up that was his second pitch, a two-seam fastball, and a curveball as well as a slider.
It was more pitches than a situational left-handed reliever needed, which was why Braves coaches told him to stick with his four-seam fastball and slider.
But now McBride is working on his old repertoire, getting back in touch with his change-up and two-seamer. A 25-year-old who came to Detroit in June’s trade with Atlanta for Wilfredo Ledezma, he isn’t sure about his role, but he came to camp two weeks early all in an effort to develop touch on a broader pitch repertoire.
McBride believes his two-seam, sinking fastball helps with his change-up and vice versa. It’s one more reason why the Tigers are planning on taking a look at him in a longer-innings role.
Detroit News,
February 27:
30 seconds with…Macay McBride
Q. It looks like the Tigers haven’t forgotten you were once a starter because from the get-go this spring, manager Jim Leyland has talked about “stretching you out.” How does that sound?
A. Anything’s fine. I liked starting. But there’s an adrenaline factor with relief that I also like. Either one’s fine with me.
Q. Are you saying you basically just want to pitch?
A. That’s exactly it. But that’s what anybody in my position is going to say. Give me the ball, tell me what you want me do to. I like it all.
Q. How long has it been since you thought of yourself as a starter?
A. It’s not a matter of that. I think I’m capable of starting or coming out of the bullpen. But it’s been a few years since I’ve done a lot of starting. My first few years in the Braves organization, I started. Then came the switch (in 2004).
Q. So you like them equally—starting and relieving?
A. There’s something to like about both jobs. You prepare yourself differently. With starting, you know when your turn is going to come. With relieving, you don’t. The phone rings, and it’s suddenly you they want. I like them both.
In March Macay was optioned to Toledo, to get used to
starting again as part of their rotation. On April 5 he started the Mud Hens’
second game of the season—but was removed after the first inning due to elbow
tenderness. The next day he was placed on the disabled list, and on the 7th
team doctors performed an MRI on his elbow, which revealed stretched ligaments.
The Toledo Blade reported on the 9th
that “doctors told him the damaged ligament was causing bones in his elbow to
rub together.” He was sent to New York for a second opinion, and the Blade reported on the 11th:
McBride scheduled for surgery, out for season
Macay McBride’s 2008 season consisted of one inning.
A visit to Dr. David Altchek in New York yesterday revealed a small tear in McBride’s ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow. McBride said he will undergo Tommy John surgery sometime next week and will miss the rest of the season.
“I’ll be ready hopefully sometime next spring,” said McBride, a 25-year-old left-hander. “This is good because at least I won’t miss two seasons.”
McBride was first examined by Detroit Tigers orthopedic specialist Dr. Stephen Lemos this week, and an MRI showed the ligament was stretched—which could require surgery but may also be healed through rehabilitation.
But when an MRI taken by Dr. Altchek, the New York Mets’ medical director, showed the ligament was torn, McBride said his choice to have surgery was easy…
In November the Tigers signed Macay to a new contract, and
in February 2009 he was back at spring training. The Detroit News reported on February 16:
Macay McBride is impressing Leyland 10 months after he underwent Tommy John surgery on his left (throwing) elbow. McBride came to the Tigers in a 2007 trade with the Atlanta Braves involving left-hander Wilfredo Ledezma.
“I will guess he’s feeling really healthy,” Leyland said, “and I don’t think he was before (surgery).”
Leyland liked what he saw of McBride’s bullpen session Sunday.
“He threw very well,” Leyland said.
And on the 24th:
Left-hander Macay McBride appears to be recovering nicely from last year’s Tommy John surgery. At some point this season, after missing all of last year (except one start at Toledo), he could be of assistance.
“At the end of 2007,” he said, “I had a lot of pain at the back of my elbow and it ended up being a stress fracture. When I started throwing again in January (2008), it wasn’t as painful, but never felt quite right.
“It got to a point that I couldn’t recover. So I had it done (the surgery), got a new arm, but I missed a year.
“So far, everything’s been encouraging.”
On March 6, though, the Free
Press reported:
Leyland said that the Tigers have “backed off” the throwing schedule for left-hander Macay McBride, who’s recovering from Tommy John elbow surgery.
Leyland would prefer that McBride build up his stamina as a starting pitcher but added, “I’ll leave that up to somebody else.”
On March 19 Macay was assigned to Toledo; then on the 30th
he was placed on the disabled list. A report in early May said he could return
in June, but that didn’t happen. The Tigers activated him from the DL on
September 7, but he didn’t actually play anywhere. On November 9 he was granted
free agency, and on December 10 he re-signed with Detroit.
I didn’t find any references to Macay during the Tigers’ spring
training in 2010, but at some point he and the team parted ways, and on April
12 his name appeared in a list of non-roster invitees to spring training with
the Lancaster Barnstormers of the independent Atlantic League. In their first
exhibition game on April 15, he pitched two innings, striking out five and
allowing one hit and one walk. He made the team and on April 23 started the
Barnstormers’ second game of the regular season; he was removed after four
innings, ahead 4-3, due to elbow problems. That was the end of his professional
career. Still in Sylvania, he owns a screen printing and graphics business.
No comments:
Post a Comment