Left-hander T.J. McFarland is up next in our continuing series. The veteran spent
The veteran left-hander was signed to a minor league deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2024 but the Athletics executed a trade for him just before the start of the regular season, acquiring him for his second stint with the club for merely cash considerations. Not a bad move by the front office to nab him for just Fisher’s money. After a successful season the A’s re-signed him to a major league contract early on last winter, signing him for $1.8 million on November 7th.
What Were The Expectations?
McFarland had pitched well for the Athletics in 2024 as one of manager Mark Kotsay’s primary left-handed relief options. He’d appeared in a league-leading 79 games and posted a respectable 3.81 ERA in 56 2/3 innings, more than paying for the cash the A’s sent to the Dodgers to acquire him. The A’s clearly felt that he was capable of providing more of the same production against left-handed hitters which is why they shelled out one of the few free agent contracts they did for him. If he could once again be a lefty killer on the mound then he’d be a steal at that relatively low price, and there wasn’t any indication he was about to fall off.
The 36-year-old did in fact fall off. The left-hander didn’t start the year off right, getting hit hard in the early going this past season. To make matters worse for him he was also starting to give up hits to left-handed batters, the primary focus for him in the ‘pen. That affected his usage as he only made it into five games in May and pitching a grand total of two innings.
June was the beginning of the end for him. He made nine appearances during that month but often times just for a single batter. He gave up runs in three of those outings, including giving up a season-high three runs in what would ultimately be his final game of the season. The Athletics had seen enough at that point. If their left-handed reliever whose main job it was to get left-handers out was struggling this badly they needed to make a change, which they did at the end of the month. The club designated McFarland for assignment on June 27th, and he elected free agency a week later. He did not sign on with any other club for the remainder of the season. He finished the 2025 campaign with a 6.89 ERA in 27 games for the Athletics.
McFarland is still on the free agent market right now, searching for his next new home. The veteran of 13 years struggled this past season so hard that he was released, but he could have something still left in the tank. He’ll be 37 next year though and retirement has had to have crossed his mind at one point or another. His lack of signing on with another club to wrap up last year is an indication that he may have thrown his last major league pitch. If that’s the case he can be happy with a fine career, but if he does opt for a 14th season he’s likely looking at a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training.