Braves' Brandon McCarthy: Will retire at season's end

McCarthy (knee) announced Tuesday that he will retire at the end of the 2018 season, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports. "If I was going to keep playing, a month and a half ago I would have had the surgery that cleans the [knee] and I'd be back next year just a little bit after spring [training]."

McCarthy has been on the disabled list with right knee tendinitis since late June and hasn't progressed as quickly as hoped, though he believes he'll be ready to contribute at some point in September. He recently resumed throwing off a mound and will face hitters in live batting practice Saturday before initiating a minor-league rehab assignment. Because of the extensive time he has missed in addition to the pedestrian numbers he had provided over his 15 starts with the big club this season, McCarthy will transition to the bullpen once the Braves bring him back from the 60-day DL. Staying healthy has been an issue for McCarthy throughout his time in the big leagues, but he has generally been a quality mid-rotation arm when he's been able to take the hill. Over parts of 13 seasons in the majors, McCarthy has gone 69-75 and accrued a 4.20 ERA and 1.30 WHIP across 255 appearances (197 starts) with the White Sox, Rangers, Athletics, Diamondbacks, Yankees, Dodgers and Braves.