Amateur Liberatore is of
Italian descent and attended
Quigley Catholic High School in
Baden, Pennsylvania, for three years, and transferred to
Blackhawk High School in
Chippewa Township, Pennsylvania, for his senior year. He pitched 6 innings as a senior and graduated from Blackhawk in 2005. He played for the
American Legion team after his senior year and the coach thought he was more comfortable in the outfield than at pitcher. Liberatore appeared in only six games and made one start as a freshman, while allowing twelve earned runs in 10 innings. In 2007, as a sophomore, he appeared in 15 games with four starts and an 8.42
earned run average (ERA) In 2009, he was 2-0 with a perfect 0.00 ERA in three starts, with 21 strikeouts and received a medical redshirt season. A
starting pitcher in college, the Rays transitioned Liberatore into a
relief pitcher. He made his professional debut with the
Hudson Valley Renegades of the
Class A-Short Season New York–Penn League in 2010, and played for the
Charlotte Stone Crabs of the
Class A-Advanced Florida State League in 2011. Liberatore split the 2012 season between the
Montgomery Biscuits of the
Class AA Southern League and the
Durham Bulls of the
Class AAA International League, with a combined 4-5 record and 2.47 ERA in 49 games.
Los Angeles Dodgers On November 20, 2014, Liberatore was traded to the
Los Angeles Dodgers, along with
Joel Peralta, in exchange for
Jose Dominguez and
Greg Harris. He was also added to the Dodgers
40-man roster. At the conclusion of spring training, he was optioned to the Triple-A
Oklahoma City Dodgers. Liberatore began the 2015 season with the
Oklahoma City Dodgers of the Triple-A
Pacific Coast League. The Dodgers called him up to the major leagues for the first time on April 17, 2015. He made his debut by pitching the ninth inning against the
Colorado Rockies that night, retiring all three batters he faced. Liberatore pitched in 39 games for the Dodgers with a 2–2 record and 4.25 ERA. He also pitched in 19 games for Oklahoma City, with a 3.74 ERA. In 2016, he appeared in 58 games with a 3.38 ERA. Liberatore was again optioned to Oklahoma City to begin the 2017 season. After pitching in six games in the minors, he was recalled to the Dodgers on April 23. He was sidelined with a groin injury in May and then came down with left forearm tightness shortly afterwards. That injury wound up keeping him on the disabled list for the rest of the season. He only pitched 3 innings over four games for the Dodgers in 2017, allowing one run on three hits. The Dodgers designated him for assignment on August 31, 2018 and released him on September 5. In 17 major league games in 2018, he allowed four earned runs in 13 innings for a 2.77 ERA. ==See also==