With an 83-minute shift in Wednesday night's massive 4-1 victory against the San Jose Earthquakes, Chicago Fire midfielder Dax McCarty became the 37th player in Major League Soccer history to reach 300 MLS appearances in his career.
After arriving in Chicago this past offseason following time spent with FC Dallas, D.C. United, and the New York Red Bulls, McCarty becomes just the third player to hit the 300 match milestone in a Fire shirt. He joins former midfielder Jeff Larentowicz and goalkeeper Jon Busch, who each achieve the 300 mark during the 2015 season.
"Its amazing," McCarty said, following the victory. "I just found out about it a day or two ago. I knew I was up there, but I didn't know that tonight was going to be the night. It's hard to put into words what MLS has meant to me and for my career. I never take any of it for granted, ever. 300 games, it's a great accomplishment."
TEAM |
YEARS PLAYED |
APPEARANCES |
|---|---|---|
FC Dallas |
2006-10 |
93 |
D.C. United |
2011 |
13 |
New York Red Bulls |
2011-16 |
169 |
Chicago Fire |
2017 |
25 |
McCarty has appeared in 25 matches with 25 starts for the Fire this season, missing time only to join the U.S. Men's National Team during their 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup campaign as well as their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying efforts.
"I've tried to step on the field and represent the clubs I've played for with class (and) dignity and I hope that Iv'e done that," said McCarty, who captained the side Wednesday night. "I feel great. I've joined the 30 club this year. 30 years old, but I feel awesome and I hope I can continue to go on and maybe get 300 more."
He'll now look to begin his next century of appearances on Saturday night, when the Fire welcome New York City FC to Toyota Park for a 7:30 p.m. CT kickoff (CSN Chicago Plus).
Congrats, Dax!
