Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Pittsburgh Pirates‘ James McDonald has been scratched from Tuesday’s start against the Seattle Mariners and was placed on the 15-day disabled list with shoulder discomfort. Jeanmar Gomez will start in McDonald’s place, opposing Aaron Harang for the Mariners.
Since McDonald’s unbelievable start to the 2012 campaign, he has been highly mediocre for the last half of last season and thus far in 2013. He boasted a 2.37 ERA in the first half of 2012, only to follow it up with a 7.52 mark in the second half.
Though McDonald’s numbers indicated some regression, this huge backstep could be attributed to a few potential causes.
The primary battle that McDonald has always faced is with walks. With a career BB/9 over four, he had a BB/9 of over six before being placed on the disabled list. McDonald’s inability to consistently throw strikes and work deep into games has hurt his effectiveness and value to this young Pirates team.
The most important discussion, however, is on the severity of McDonald’s injury. While the Pirates are ripe with Quad-A-level replacements, it is unclear when we will see McDonald again. If he has been battling pain that led to his erratic performance and current DL stint, he could surely be out of action for the foreseeable future.
If this is more of a phantom DL stint, however, he could return after just a couple of turns through the rotation. Regardless, Pirates fans and the team’s head brass must wonder if they will ever see the James McDonald who pitched those 111 elite innings in the first half of 2012.
Gabe Isaacson is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter: @gabeisaacson.
