McBride attended Screven County High School in Sylvania, Georgia, and made his mark as a power pitcher with a fastball in the low 90s.

As a high school junior he led the all-state Team Georgia to victory in the annual Sunbelt Classic and was named the tournament's most valuable player (MVP).

Although McBride initially committed to the University of Georgia, which had offered him a baseball scholarship, in the end he entered the amateur draft and was selected by the Atlanta Braves in the first round, 24th pick overall.

He made his major league debut on July 22 and pitched 14 innings for the Braves in 23 games, with a 5.79 earned run average and 22 strikeouts in his rookie campaign.

McBride rejoined Atlanta for the 2005 National League Division Series, pitching an inning of scoreless relief in Game 1 against the Houston Astros.

[8] Atlanta recalled McBride in mid-May, and he put together a 1–0 record with a 3.60 ERA before the being traded to the Detroit Tigers on June 20 for pitcher Wilfredo Ledezma.