Can the D-backs Repeat Overseas Success with Scott McGough?

Arizona has found success in the past signing players out of Japan and Korea.

The Diamondbacks made a big bullpen move on Thursday, when they signed reliever Scott McGough to a two-year deal. McGough is the third player Arizona has signed to a major league contract from overseas, following Yoshihisa Hirano and Merrill Kelly. Hirano and Kelly both have found some success pitching for Arizona, so there is hope that McGough can follow in their footsteps.

Hirano originally signed a two-year deal for $6 million following the 2017 season. In his first season in Arizona he was the team's most consistent reliever, pitching to a 2.44 ERA (173 ERA+) and 1.2 Baseball Reference WAR in 75 appearances. He wasn't as effective in his second season, as batters were able to attack his two-pitch mix more aggressively and caused his run prevention luck to flip the other way. In total, he was worth about 0.9 bWAR, for the cost of just $6M so the signing was an overall success.

The second overseas signing had a much larger impact, as Kelly proved to be a massive addition to the D-backs' rotation for the past four years. He originally signed to a two-year deal worth $5.5M with two club options at $4.25M and $5.25M that were exercised. In 97 starts, Kelly is 36-35 with a 3.97 ERA/4.07 FIP in 573 innings. His total contributions so far adds up to 8.5 bWAR. His best season came in 2022, in which he won 13 games and set career bests in starts (33), innings pitched (200.1), ERA (3.37), strikeouts (177), and bWAR (3.6). Kelly has since signed a two-year extension with a club option that could keep him in Arizona through the 2025 season.

McGough comes with a fastball that averages 94 MPH, a slider, and a splitter that serves as his best secondary pitch. The fastball/splitter combination has been effective in Arizona in the past, with Curt Schilling, Dan Haren, Randy Johnson, Jose Valverde, J.J. Putz, and Hirano being notable examples. McGough has experience closing games for a good team in Japan, whose competition level is estimated to be between Triple-A and the big leagues. He'll be one the candidates to audition for the closer's role next spring.