GLENDALE, Ariz. – Brandon McCarthy was fairly explicit in describing Wednesday's outing against the Chicago Cubs, using a term to describe the output of a horse's digestive system, but he also found a silver lining on a gray afternoon."I kind of like sometimes failing in spring because it gives you a better idea of what you need to do," McCarthy said. "It kind of takes off the bulletproof sheen that you get in the off-season of, 'I'm going to win the Cy Young this year and everything's going to be where I want it,' and you realize right away it's still just as hard as you remember.