Alex McFarlane Stats & Scouting Report

IP	5.1
ERA	16.88
WHIP	3
BB/9	8.44
SO/9	8.44

Full name Alexander Jeffrey McFarlane
Born 06/09/2001 in St. Thomas, VI
Profile Ht.: 6'3" / Wt.: 215 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School Miami
Drafted in the 4th round (122nd overall) by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2022 (signed for $575,000).

View Draft Report

McFarlane ranked as the No. 186 prospect in the 2019 class out of high school as an upside projection righthander who hailed from the US Virgin Islands. The Cardinals drafted him in the 25th round but instead of signing, he went to Miami, where he has mostly pitched out of the bullpen. Now listed at 6-foot-4, 215 pounds, McFarlane has shown impressive natural arm talent and ‘wow’ stuff, but his performance has never quite matched what scouts have seen coming out of his hand. He was used as a starter early this spring but moved back into a reliever role after allowing five runs in 2.1 innings against Clemson in March. On the season, McFarlane posted a 4.00 ERA over 45 innings, with 68 strikeouts (34.3 K%) and 20 walks (10.1 BB%). His high-spin fastball sits 95-96 mph and has been up to 99, and he has also flashed a wipeout slider and swing-and-miss changeup—both in the mid 80s with plus grades when they are on. McFarlane’s command can waver and his career walk rate at Miami is below-average, but for a team that thinks it can help him get more consistent in that area, his stuff is explosive.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

BA Grade/Risk: 50/Extreme.

Track Record: McFarlane was a 25th-round pick of the Cardinals out of high school but elected to head to Miami. Three years later, he’d upped his stock enough to become the Phillies’ fourth-round pick n 2022 and sign for $575,000. He was used near-exclusively out of the bullpen in Coral Gables but spent his first pro season as a starter at Low-A Clearwater. He missed the entire 2024 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery.

Scouting Report: One of the current trends in baseball is to take pitchers out of Miami, tweak their stuff and then reap the results. In 2023, the Phillies got McFarlane to swap his four-seamer for a two-seamer. The move was designed to help the righthander get more groundballs without sacrificing his mid-90s velocity. He was still getting used to the pitch before getting hurt. McFarlane’s slider showed promising analytical traits but needed plenty of polish before it could get near its ceiling. Even in its current form, the slider garnered a miss rate of 54% in 2023. The third pitch in his mix is a high-80s split-changeup with plenty of running life. It projected as a below-average offering. McFarlane walked 16.3% of hitters at Clearwater, a mark that suggested well below-average control.

The Future: By the end of 2024, McFarlane had advanced to throwing live batting practice sessions. He should be ready for spring training and could fit as a high-leverage reliever with further refinement, a ceiling which will hinge on whether his stuff re-emerges with the same quality it showed before the surgery.

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 60 | Slider: 60 | Changeup: 40 | Control: 30.
BA Grade: 50/Extreme

Track Record: McFarlane was a coveted prospect out of high school, and the Cardinals drafted him in the 25th round, but didn’t sign him. The Phillies popped McFarlane out of Miami in the fourth round of the 2022 draft. He was mostly a reliever in college but spent his first full season as a pro in the rotation at Low-A Clearwater, where he struggled with control and command. He had Tommy John surgery after the season and will likely miss all of 2024 while recovering.

Scouting Report: The most important part of McFarlane’s career involved his move from a four-seam to a two-seam fastball. The former did not work well with McFarlane’s arm slot, while the latter proved adept at getting grounders while maintaining its velocity in the mid-to-high 90s. He’s still learning how to control his sinker and where to start it before letting its movement do the rest. The slider has high spin rates and plenty of sweep in the mid 80s and could get to plus with plenty of refinement. Like the rest of his arsenal, he needs to greatly improve the command of the pitch. He rounds out his mix with a split-change in the high 80s with hard running life away from lefthanders that could get to below-average with further refinement. He has well below-average control.

The Future: McFarlane’s development is on hold until 2025 while he recovers from the surgery. He’ll likely fit as a reliever when he reaches the big leagues, though scouts believe he has the potential and pitch mix to work high-leverage situations.

Scouting Grades Fastball: 60 | Slider: 60 | Changeup: 40 | Control: 30
BA Grade/Risk: 45/High

Track Record: McFarlane was mainly used as a reliever in his first two seasons at Miami, but the Hurricanes moved him to the rotation in 2022. The move proved to be short lived, as McFarlane made just four starts, with 23 appearances coming out of the bullpen. The Phillies believed in his ability to start, and drafted him in the fourth round. He made three starts with Low-A Clearwater after signing and allowed eight runs in eight innings.

Scouting Report: McFarlane has an electric, three-pitch mix, with a high-spin fastball that averaged 96 mph and topped out at 97.7 mph in his pro debut. The organization is having McFarlane work on the pitch's shape and efficiency, as it doesn't have much movement. Although his command of the pitch can waver, it still projects as an above-average offering. He has no trouble commanding his secondaries--a pair of above-average or better pitches led by his plus slider. The pitch averages over 2,700 rpm of spin, and projects as a legitimate swing-and-miss offering. It sat at 84.7 mph in his pro debut and produced a whiff rate greater than 44%. His mid-80s split-changeup gives him another bat-missing weapon with fading life, but he didn't use it in his brief debut. McFarlane has below-average control, and will need to throw more strikes to profile as a starter.

The Future: McFarlane should start the 2023 season at High-A Jersey Shore. With his explosive arsenal he has the ceiling of a mid-rotation starter, but he'll need to become a more consistent strike-thrower.

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55. Slider: 60. Changeup: 55 Control: 40.

Draft Prospects

School: Miami Committed/Drafted: Cardinals ’19 (25)
Age At Draft: 21.1
BA Grade: 45/High
Scouting Grades: Fastball: 60 | Curveball: - | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 55 | Cutter: | Control: 40
McFarlane ranked as the No. 186 prospect in the 2019 class out of high school as an upside projection righthander who hailed from the US Virgin Islands. The Cardinals drafted him in the 25th round but instead of signing, he went to Miami, where he has mostly pitched out of the bullpen. Now listed at 6-foot-4, 215 pounds, McFarlane has shown impressive natural arm talent and ‘wow’ stuff, but his performance has never quite matched what scouts have seen coming out of his hand. He was used as a starter early this spring but moved back into a reliever role after allowing five runs in 2.1 innings against Clemson in March. On the season, McFarlane posted a 4.00 ERA over 45 innings, with 68 strikeouts (34.3 K%) and 20 walks (10.1 BB%). His high-spin fastball sits 95-96 mph and has been up to 99, and he has also flashed a wipeout slider and swing-and-miss changeup—both in the mid 80s with plus grades when they are on. McFarlane’s command can waver and his career walk rate at Miami is below-average, but for a team that thinks it can help him get more consistent in that area, his stuff is explosive.
Teams will have to go out of their way this spring to scout righthander Alex McFarlane, who goes to school on St. Thomas, which is one of the U.S. Virgin Islands. The trip could be well worth it, however, especially after what the Miami commit showed this summer. At 6-foot-3, 170 pounds, McFarlane has long, gangly legs and plenty of room to fill out, currently throwing a fastball that touched 92 mph but was more regularly in the 87-91 mph range with sink. He also has a sweeping, 76-78 mph slider that has potential and a changeup in the 80-85 mph range that had fading life during the East Coast Pro showcase in Hoover, Ala. McFarlane is certainly a projection prospect, but given his frame, quick arm speed and feel to spin his slider, he is a definitie pop-up candidate for the spring.

Scouting Reports

BA Grade/Risk: 45/High

Track Record: McFarlane was mainly used as a reliever in his first two seasons at Miami, but the Hurricanes moved him to the rotation in 2022. The move proved to be short lived, as McFarlane made just four starts, with 23 appearances coming out of the bullpen. The Phillies believed in his ability to start, and drafted him in the fourth round. He made three starts with Low-A Clearwater after signing and allowed eight runs in eight innings.

Scouting Report: McFarlane has an electric, three-pitch mix, with a high-spin fastball that averaged 96 mph and topped out at 97.7 mph in his pro debut. The organization is having McFarlane work on the pitch's shape and efficiency, as it doesn't have much movement. Although his command of the pitch can waver, it still projects as an above-average offering. He has no trouble commanding his secondaries--a pair of above-average or better pitches led by his plus slider. The pitch averages over 2,700 rpm of spin, and projects as a legitimate swing-and-miss offering. It sat at 84.7 mph in his pro debut and produced a whiff rate greater than 44%. His mid-80s split-changeup gives him another bat-missing weapon with fading life, but he didn't use it in his brief debut. McFarlane has below-average control, and will need to throw more strikes to profile as a starter.

The Future: McFarlane should start the 2023 season at High-A Jersey Shore. With his explosive arsenal he has the ceiling of a mid-rotation starter, but he'll need to become a more consistent strike-thrower.

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55. Slider: 60. Changeup: 55 Control: 40.
BA Grade/Risk: 45/High

Track Record: McFarlane was mainly used as a reliever in his first two seasons at Miami, but the Hurricanes moved him to the rotation in 2022. The move proved to be short lived, as McFarlane made just four starts, with 23 appearances coming out of the bullpen. The Phillies believed in his ability to start, and drafted him in the fourth round. He made three starts with Low-A Clearwater after signing and allowed eight runs in eight innings.

Scouting Report: McFarlane has an electric, three-pitch mix, with a high-spin fastball that averaged 96 mph and topped out at 97.7 mph in his pro debut. The organization is having McFarlane work on the pitch's shape and efficiency, as it doesn't have much movement. Although his command of the pitch can waver, it still projects as an above-average offering. He has no trouble commanding his secondaries--a pair of above-average or better pitches led by his plus slider. The pitch averages over 2,700 rpm of spin, and projects as a legitimate swing-and-miss offering. It sat at 84.7 mph in his pro debut and produced a whiff rate greater than 44%. His mid-80s split-changeup gives him another bat-missing weapon with fading life, but he didn't use it in his brief debut. McFarlane has below-average control, and will need to throw more strikes to profile as a starter.

The Future: McFarlane should start the 2023 season at High-A Jersey Shore. With his explosive arsenal he has the ceiling of a mid-rotation starter, but he'll need to become a more consistent strike-thrower.

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55. Slider: 60. Changeup: 55 Control: 40.
BA Grade: 45/High

August Update: McFarlane ranked as the No. 186 prospect in the 2019 class out of high school as an upside projection righthander who hailed from the US Virgin Islands. The Cardinals drafted him in the 25th round but instead of signing, he went to Miami, where he has mostly pitched out of the bullpen. Now listed at 6-foot-4, 215 pounds, McFarlane has shown impressive natural arm talent and ‘wow&#39 stuff, but his performance has never quite matched what scouts have seen coming out of his hand. He was used as a starter early this spring but moved back into a reliever role after allowing five runs in 2.1 innings against Clemson in March. On the season, McFarlane posted a 4.00 ERA over 45 innings, with 68 strikeouts (34.3 K%) and 20 walks (10.1 BB%). His high-spin fastball sits 95-96 mph and has been up to 99, and he has also flashed a wipeout slider and swing-and-miss changeup—both in the mid 80s with plus grades when they are on. McFarlane&#39s command can waver and his career walk rate at Miami is below-average, but his stuff is explosive.