Timothy John McFarland (born June 8, 1989) is an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

in the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

organization. He has previously played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The f ...

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

, and

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

Career

McFarland attended

Amos Alonzo Stagg High School Amos Alonzo Stagg High School, Stagg, or AAS, is a public four-year high school located at the intersection of S. Roberts Rd. and W. 111th Street in Palos Hills, Illinois, a southwest suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part o ...

Palos Hills, Illinois Palos Hills is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a southwest suburb of Chicago. The city was established in 1958 and had reached a population of 18,530 in the 2020 census. It is the home of Moraine Valley Community College as ...

, where he played for the school's baseball team and basketball team for 4 years. As a senior, McFarland recorded 103 strikeouts while walking only 13 in innings pitched. He signed a

letter of intent A letter of intent (LOI or LoI, or Letter of Intent) is a document outlining the understanding between two or more parties which they intend to formalize in a contract, legally binding agreement. The concept is similar to a Heads of agreement ( ...

to attend the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

and play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

for the

Missouri Tigers baseball The Missouri Tigers baseball team represents the University of Missouri in NCAA Division I college baseball. The Missouri Tigers had an overall record of 2053-1339-17 entering the 2012 season. Head coaches Year-by-year record CB=''Collegiat ...

team.

Cleveland Indians

The

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

selected McFarland in the fourth round of the

2007 MLB draft The 2007 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft of high school and college baseball players and was held on June 7, 2007 and June 8, 2007. The first day session of the draft included the fi ...

. Rather than attend Missouri, McFarland signed with the Indians. While pitching for the

Kinston Indians The Kinston Indians were a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League (CL) located in Kinston, North Carolina, from 1978 to 2011. They played their home games at Grainger Stadium, which opened in 1949. The team began play in 1978 as the Ki ...

of the

Class A-Advanced High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

Carolina League The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 unti ...

in 2010, he was named to the all-star game.

Baltimore Orioles

After spending the 2012 season with the

Akron Aeros The Akron RubberDucks are a Minor League Baseball team based in Akron, Ohio. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They play in Canal Park, located in downtown Akron, which seats 7,630 ...

of the

Class AA Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...

Eastern League and the

Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy Merchant ship, mercha ...

of the

Class AAA Triple-A (officially Class AAA) has been the highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946. Currently, two leagues operate at the Triple-A level, the International League (IL) and the Pacific Coast League (PCL ...

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...

, the

selected McFarland from the Indians in the 2012 Rule 5 draft. After a strong

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

, he was named to the Orioles' Opening Day roster. The Orioles traded fellow relief pitcher Luis Ayala in April 2013, further solidifying McFarland's hold on a roster spot and improving his chances of staying with Baltimore; a Rule 5 pick must remain with the MLB team that drafted him for the entire season or be offered back to the original team for $25,000. He earned his first career major league win on June 13 pitching an inning of relief against the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

. He made his first career start on June 28 against the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

. In his first full major league season, McFarland made 38 appearances with all but one in relief. McFarland earned his first major league win as a starter on July 1, 2014 against the Texas Rangers.

Arizona Diamondbacks

McFarland signed a minor league contract with the

on March 3, 2017, one week after he was released by the Orioles. The Diamondbacks promoted him to the major leagues on April 27. On December 6, 2017, McFarland signed a one-year, $850,000 contract with the Diamondbacks. In 2018, McFarland posted a career best 2.00 ERA in 47 appearances. In 2019, he went 0–0 with a 4.82 ERA over 56 innings for the Diamondbacks.

Oakland Athletics

On November 4, 2019, McFarland was claimed off waivers by the

. In 2020 for Oakland, McFarland pitched to a 4.35 ERA with 9 strikeouts over 20.2 innings pitched in 20 appearances. He became a free agent after the shortened 2020 season.

Washington Nationals

On February 16, 2021, McFarland signed a minor league contract with the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

organization. On March 27, McFarland was released by the Nationals. On March 31, McFarland re-signed with the Nationals on a new minor league contract. He was assigned to the Triple-A

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Field ...

to begin the 2021 season, and logged a 5.25 ERA in 18 appearances before he was released on June 30.

St. Louis Cardinals

On June 30, 2021, McFarland signed a split contract with the

organization, claiming that he had a better chance to get called up in St. Louis than in Washington. On July 16, McFarland's contract was selected to the active roster. He spent the remainder of the season with St. Louis, going 4–1 with a 2.56 ERA in 38 relief appearances. In innings pitched, McFarland recorded 21 strikeouts and 12 double plays, the latter of which set a new franchise record after the All-Star break. He was the losing pitcher in the NL Wild Card Game, surrendering a walk to

Cody Bellinger Cody James Bellinger (born July 13, 1995) is an American professional baseball center fielder and first baseman for the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was selected ...

, who later scored on Chris Taylor's tie-breaking walk-off home run. On November 8, 2021, McFarland signed a one-year contract to return to the Cardinals. On August 10, 2022, McFarland was designated for assignment. At the time, he had a 6.61 ERA in 28 relief appearances. After his release, McFarland was re-signed by the Cardinals to a minor league contract on August 23. He was assigned to the Triple-A

Memphis Redbirds The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbir ...

. He elected free agency on November 10, 2022.

New York Mets

On January 3, 2022, McFarland signed a minor league deal with the

Personal life

McFarland and his wife, Jenna, married in 2016 and welcomed their first child, a son, in November 2021. In 2018, McFarland graduated from the

University of Phoenix University of Phoenix (UoPX) is a private for-profit university headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Founded in 1976, the university confers certificates and degrees at the certificate, associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree lev ...

with a degree in business management.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:McFarland, TJ 1989 births Living people People from Palos Hills, Illinois Sportspeople from Cook County, Illinois Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from Illinois Baltimore Orioles players Arizona Diamondbacks players Oakland Athletics players St. Louis Cardinals players Gulf Coast Indians players Lake County Captains players Kinston Indians players Akron Aeros players Phoenix Desert Dogs players Columbus Clippers players Caribes de Anzoátegui players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Norfolk Tides players Aberdeen IronBirds players Gulf Coast Orioles players Frederick Keys players Bowie Baysox players Reno Aces players Rochester Red Wings players Memphis Redbirds players