James McDonald

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (2008-2013)

James McDonald was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 2008 to 2013 for the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 6 seasons. Across 131 career appearances, he went 32-30 with a 4.20 ERA and 442 strikeouts.

W (Wins):
Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
ERA (Earned Run Average):
Earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched: (ER × 9) ÷ IP. The primary measure of pitching effectiveness.
SO (Strikeouts):
For a batter, times retired on a third strike; for a pitcher, batters retired on a third strike.
WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched):
Baserunners allowed per inning: (BB + H) ÷ IP. Under 1.00 is elite.

Data updated

W–L 32–30
ERA 4.20
WHIP 1.40
SO 442
Pitcher PIV -2510.9
Position
Pitcher
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
6'5" / 205 lb
Born
10/19/1984 in Long Beach, CA, USA
MLB Debut
2008-09-17
Last Game
2013-05-01

Full name: James Zell McDonald

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Career Pitching Statistics

James McDonald — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
32 30 131 82 1 0 0 512.1 487 239 56 231 442 4.20 -2510.9

Career ERA 4.20 vs. league average 4.09 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

James McDonald — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
2008 LAN NL 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 6.0 5 0 1 2 0.00 — 0.0
2009 LAN NL 5 5 45 4 0 0 0 63.0 60 28 34 54 4.00 4.32 (+7%) -246.1
2010 LAN NL 0 1 4 1 0 0 0 7.2 11 7 5 7 8.22 — 0.0
2010 PIT NL 4 5 11 11 0 0 0 64.0 59 25 24 61 3.52 4.08 (+14%) 1900.9
2011 PIT NL 9 9 31 31 0 0 0 171.0 176 80 78 142 4.21 3.94 (-7%) -3154.7
2012 PIT NL 12 8 30 29 1 0 0 171.0 147 80 69 151 4.21 4.01 (-5%) -817.4
2013 PIT NL 2 2 6 6 0 0 0 29.2 29 19 20 25 5.76 3.87 (-49%) -193.6
Career · 7 seasons 32 30 131 82 1 0 0 512.1 487 239 231 442 4.20 — -2,511

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Career Batting Statistics

James McDonald — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
136 145 15 16 2 0 0 4 0 13 75 .110 .184 .124 .308 -888

Career AVG .110 vs. league average .258 across their career seasons — 57.2% below league average.

Career OBP .184 vs. league average .325 across their career seasons — 43.5% below league average.

Career SLG .124 vs. league average .406 across their career seasons — 69.4% below league average.

Career OPS .308 vs. league average .731 across their career seasons — 57.9% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

James McDonald — Season-by-Season Batting
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
2008 LAN NL 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2009 LAN NL 45 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 .000 — — — — 0.0
2010 LAN NL 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
2010 PIT NL 11 20 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 11 .050 — — — — 0.0
2011 PIT NL 31 55 3 5 1 0 0 3 0 3 29 .091 .255 (-64%) .320 (-57%) .399 (-73%) .719 (-66%) -571.3
2012 PIT NL 33 49 8 7 0 0 0 1 0 8 23 .143 — — — — -317.2
2013 PIT NL 8 11 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 .273 — — — — 0.0
Career · 7 seasons 136 145 15 16 2 0 0 4 0 13 75 .110 — — — — -888

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

James McDonald — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

James McDonald — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2008 NLCS LAN 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

James McDonald — Playoff Career Pitching
W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
0 0 2 0 0 5.1 3 0 2 7 0.00

Playoff Pitching by Year

James McDonald — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2008 NLCS LAN 0 0 2 0 0 5.1 3 0 2 7 0.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (267 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

James McDonald — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home68688603.088
Away687771001.130

Pitching — Home / Away

James McDonald — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home66275.0229941132193.08
Away65237.12581451182235.50

Last 10 Games — Batting

James McDonald — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
2013-05-01 PITMILW 010000000
2013-04-30 PITMILL 200000002
2013-04-27 PITSTLW 100000001
2013-04-25 PITPHIW 202000000
2013-04-20 PITATLW 200000001
2013-04-15 PITSTLL 000000000
2013-04-09 PITAZW 311000001
2013-04-04 PITCHCL 100000010
2012-09-21 PITHOUL 000000000
2012-09-14 PITCHCL 100000001

Last 10 Games — Pitching

James McDonald — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
2013-04-30 PITMIL — 5.0877530
2013-04-25 PITPHI — 5.0533340
2013-04-20 PITATL W 6.0211490
2013-04-15 PITSTL L 1.2883200
2013-04-09 PITAZ W 5.0444451
2013-04-04 PITCHC L 7.0211240
2012-09-21 PITHOU — 0.0233101
2012-09-14 PITCHC L 3.2544420
2012-09-08 PITCHC — 5.2733221
2012-09-02 PITMIL L 2.2687164

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

James McDonald — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
P 131 82 34 47 4 3

Season-by-Season Fielding

James McDonald — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
2008 LAN P 4 0 1 1 0 0
2009 LAN P 45 4 3 3 0 1
2010 LAN P 4 1 1 1 0 0
2010 PIT P 11 11 5 7 1 1
2011 PIT P 31 31 8 19 1 0
2012 PIT P 30 29 14 15 1 1
2013 PIT P 6 6 2 1 1 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

James McDonald — Career Games by Position
Position Games
Pitcher 131

Salary History

James McDonald — Salary History
Year Team League Salary
2013 PIT NL $3,025,000
2012 PIT NL $502,500
2011 PIT NL $443,000
2009 LAN NL $400,750
Total Career Earnings $4,371,250

College History

James McDonald — College History
School Name City State Years Attended
Golden West College Huntington Beach CA 2003

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

James McDonald (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Johan Oviedo
    15-26, 4.29 ERA
  2. 97
    Kris Bubic
    23-38, 4.10 ERA
  3. 96
    Aaron Sanchez
    38-38, 4.16 ERA
  4. 95
    John Maine
    41-36, 4.45 ERA
  5. 91
    Patrick Sandoval
    20-52, 4.14 ERA
  6. 90
    Army Cooper
    32-16, 4.36 ERA

James McDonald: the record in brief

According to the bio, James McDonald debuted on September 17, 2008 and played a final game on May 1, 2013. The team column moves through the Los Angeles Dodgers (2008 to 2010) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (2010 through 2013). At 6'5" and 205 pounds, McDonald is listed as a pitcher. The bio says McDonald hit left-handed while throwing right-handed. McDonald was born on October 19, 1984, in Long Beach, CA, USA. James McDonald was the playing name; the full given name is James Zell.

McDonald's career pitching line is 32 wins, 30 losses and a 4.20 ERA over 131 appearances. McDonald had 442 strikeouts. McDonald's 4.20 ERA was close to the 4.09 league figure for those seasons. McDonald won 12 games in 2012, the most of any season listed. In 2011, one of the busiest seasons, McDonald posted a 4.21 ERA; the league figure that year was 3.94.

Pitching in the playoffs, McDonald went 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 2 games. Those appearances came in 2008.

Frequently Asked Questions about James McDonald

What years did James McDonald play?
James McDonald played in Major League Baseball from 2008 to 2013.
Was James McDonald a pitcher?
Yes. James McDonald pitched in the major leagues, recording 32 wins and 442 strikeouts.
How many home runs did James McDonald hit?
James McDonald hit 0 career home runs with 16 hits.
What was James McDonald's career batting average?
James McDonald batted .110 over his career, with 16 hits in 145 at bats.
How many RBI did James McDonald have?
James McDonald drove in 4 runs in his career.
What was James McDonald's career ERA?
James McDonald finished with a 4.20 career ERA, going 32-30 with 442 strikeouts.