Samuel
McArthur

Verbally committed to Illinois.

An upside arm to follow that’s still uncommitted from this event: RHP Samuel McArthur (Champaign Central, 2024). McArthur toed the rubber on Tuesday afternoon at 6-foot-2, 180-pounds and showed a loose, whippy arm to go along with an athletic delivery downhill. He ran his fastball up to 89.1 mph, pitching in the mid-to-upper-80s, with seemingly more to come. McArthur spun an upper-70s breaking ball to pair with his heater and, while he didn’t have consistent feel for it in this look, it’s a pitch that has impressed our staff across a few prior looks. 

Positional Profile: OF/RHP
Body: 6-2, 180-pounds.
Delivery: Athletic delivery, high leg kick into a drop and drive lower half, cross-fire stride, creates some deception and tough angles.
Arm Action: RH. Loose, whippy arm action out of a 3/4 slot.
FB: T89, 84-88 mph. Plays with ride through the zone. T2226, 2104 average rpm.
CB: 74-78 mph. Short, two-plane break. T2246, 2088 average rpm.
SL: 75-78 mph. Short lateral break with depth. T2284, 2120 average rpm.

RHP/OF Sam McCarthur (Champaign Central, 2024) is an uncommitted senior-to-be, and currently ranked No. 140 in the state’s 2024 class. McCarthur jumped on our radar this spring after a brief outing on the mound where he jumped up 87 mph, earning a mention within our ‘Week 8 Scout Blog’. During his ‘pen in Normal, McCarthur impressed with athletic actions on the mound and his quick arm. His fastball sat mostly 87 mph, topping out at 87.7 mph with an average of 7.3 in. of horizontal movement. His curveball sat 72-75 mph with 11/5 shape, and spun it at an average of 2109 rpm. He rounded out his arsenal with a 10/4 shaped slider that sat 74-77 mph. He throws all his offerings with conviction. His arm played in the outfield, too, where he fired his best bullet at 89 mph (second best at the event) on throws to home. His peak exit velocity at the event was 92.6 mph. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound prospect is a name-to-know in the 2024 class.

Positional Profile: OF/RHP
Body: 6-2, 180-pounds.
Delivery: Uptempo, athletic delivery, high leg lift with tuck, drop/drive delivery, lands in-line.
Arm Action: RH. Long, loose clean arm action, 3/4 slot.
FB: T88, 87-87 mph. Armside run, life through the zone. T2186, 2148 average rpm.
CB: 72-75 mph. 11/5 action, quality movement, can land. T2200, 2109 average rpm.
SL: 74-77 mph. 10/4 shape, horizontal action. T2185, 2118 average rpm.

Uncommitted. Stands at an athletic 6-foot-2, 185-pounds. Saw limited action as he threw 1 � innings in relief, allowing one hit, one unearned run, walking one and striking out one. Showed a fastball with carry through the zone that sat 83-86 mph, touching 87 mph with 2400 RPMs. Mixed in a curveball that sat 74-77 mph with 11/5 shape. An impressive look at the junior coming off of a wrist injury.