James McArthur

James McArthur

28-Year-Old PitcherRP
Kansas City Royals
2025 Fantasy Outlook
Matt Quatraro's early season usage patterns in the ninth inning forecasted a shared closer role in Kansas City, but McArthur emerged with a greater-than 50 percent save share over the first few months of the 2024 campaign. The 28-year-old ultimately led the Royals with 18 saves and a 43.9 percent team save share, but his inconsistent performance - notably, seven blown saves - forced a demotion from closing. McArthur posted a 6.87 ERA in the second half before he was subsequently diagnosed with a Grade 1 UCL sprain in his right elbow. While a Grade 1 sprain is the least severe, there is always long-term concern when UCL damage is involved. As of now, McArthur expected to be ready for spring training, but a return to closing appears unlikely after Kansas City heavily invested in its bullpen at last year's trade deadline. Read Past Outlooks
$Signed a one-year contract with the Royals in February of 2024.
Expected to be ready for spring
PKansas City Royals
Elbow
October 15, 2024
McArthur (elbow) is expected to be ready for the start of spring training, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
ANALYSIS
McArthur was diagnosed with a Grade 1 UCL sprain in his right elbow in mid-September, resulting in a premature end to his season. While a Grade 1 sprain is the least severe, there is always going to be some long-term concern when UCL damage is involved. For now, though, the expectation is McArthur will be ready for spring training after some rest and rehab.
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Pitching Stats
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2024
2023
2022
2024 MLB Game Log
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2023 MLB Game Log
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2022 MLB Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
16
Last 10 Games
16
Last 5 Games
16
How many pitches does James McArthur generally throw?
 
1-10
 
11-20
 
21-30
 
31-40
 
41-50
 
51-60
 
61-70
 
71-80
 
81-90
 
91-100
 
101-110
 
111-120
 
121+
 
1-10
 
11-20
 
21-30
 
31-40
 
41-50
 
51-60
 
61-70
 
71-80
 
81-90
 
91-100
 
101-110
 
111-120
 
121+
 
1-10
 
11-20
 
21-30
 
31-40
 
41-50
 
51-60
 
61-70
 
71-80
 
81-90
 
91-100
 
101-110
 
111-120
 
121+
What part of the game does James McArthur generally pitch?
 
 
 
1st
 
 
 
2nd
 
 
 
3rd
 
 
 
4th
 
 
 
5th
 
 
 
6th
 
 
 
7th
 
 
 
8th
 
 
 
9th
 
Extra
 
 
 
1st
 
 
 
2nd
 
 
 
3rd
 
 
 
4th
 
 
 
5th
 
 
 
6th
 
 
 
7th
 
 
 
8th
 
 
 
9th
 
Extra
 
 
 
1st
 
 
 
2nd
 
 
 
3rd
 
 
 
4th
 
 
 
5th
 
 
 
6th
 
 
 
7th
 
 
 
8th
 
 
 
9th
 
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2022
 
 
-3%
BAA vs RHP
2024
 
 
-2%
BAA vs LHP
2023
 
 
-14%
BAA vs RHP
2022
No Stats
BAA Batters K BB H 2B 3B HR
Since 2022vs Left .286 151 34 7 40 7 1 6
Since 2022vs Right .277 186 38 9 48 10 1 4
2024vs Left .295 113 24 6 31 2 1 4
2024vs Right .301 134 25 8 37 8 0 4
2023vs Left .257 38 10 1 9 5 0 2
2023vs Right .220 52 13 1 11 2 1 0
2022vs Left 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2022vs Right 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
More Splits View More Split Stats
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2022
 
 
-40%
ERA on Road
2024
 
 
-22%
ERA on Road
2023
 
 
-84%
ERA on Road
2022
No Stats
ERA WHIP IP W L SV K/9 BB/9 HR/9
Since 2022Home 5.83 1.40 46.1 3 4 11 8.5 1.9 1.2
Since 2022Away 3.48 1.16 33.2 3 3 11 7.5 1.6 1.1
2024Home 5.46 1.50 31.1 2 4 9 7.5 2.3 1.1
2024Away 4.26 1.38 25.1 3 3 9 8.2 2.1 1.4
2023Home 6.60 1.20 15.0 1 0 2 10.8 1.2 1.2
2023Away 1.08 0.48 8.1 0 0 2 5.4 0.0 0.0
2022Home 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2022Away 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
More Splits View More Split Stats
Stat Review
How does James McArthur compare to other relievers?
This section compares his stats with all relief pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 30 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.

* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
  • K/BB
    Strikeout to walk ratio.
  • K/9
    Average strikeouts per nine innings.
  • BB/9
    Average walks per nine innings.
  • HR/9
    Average home runs allowed per nine innings.
  • Fastball
    Average fastball velocity.
  • ERA
    Earned run average. The average earned runs allowed per nine innings.
  • WHIP
    Walks plus hits per inning pitched.
  • BABIP
    Batting average on balls in play. Measures how many balls in play against a pitcher go for hits.
  • GB/FB
    Groundball to flyball ratio. The higher the number, the more likely a pitcher is to induce groundballs.
  • Left On Base
    The percentage of base runners that a pitcher strands on base over the course of a season.
  • Exit Velocity
    The speed of the baseball as it comes off the bat, immediately after a batter makes contact.
  • Barrels/BBE
    The percentage of batted ball events resulting in a Barrel. A Barrel is a batted ball with similar exit velocity and launch angle to past ones that led to a minimum .500 batting average and 1.500 slugging percentage.
  • Spin Rate
    Spin Rate is the rate of spin on a baseball after it is released. It is measured in revolutions per minute (rpm).
  • Balls Hit 95+ MPH
    The percentage of batted balls hit that met or exceeded the 95 MPH threshold.
  • Swinging Strike
    The percentage of pitches that result in a swing and a miss.
K/BB
3.50
 
K/9
7.8
 
BB/9
2.2
 
HR/9
1.3
 
Fastball
95.0 mph
 
ERA
4.92
 
WHIP
1.45
 
BABIP
.351
 
GB/FB
2.18
 
Left On Base
65.0%
 
Exit Velocity
84.4 mph
 
Barrels/BBE
5.6%
 
Spin Rate
2418 rpm
 
Balls Hit 95+ MPH
27.3%
 
Swinging Strike
12.8%
 
Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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2024 Fantasy Outlook
The Royals acquired McArthur via trade last May after the 26-year-old was designated for assignment by Phillies. The 6-foot-7 right-hander was mostly unimpressive as a long reliever for Kansas City's Triple-A affiliate, but nonetheless he was recalled for his big-league debut last June. He allowed seven earned runs over an inning of work during his MLB debut, then was shuttled back and forth between the majors and minors multiple times. Upon his final recall in early September, McArthur looked like a completely different pitcher. He closed out the season throwing more curveballs and fewer sinkers, which resulted in a 12-game scoreless streak spanning 16.1 innings with an impressive 19:0 K:BB. He even got some run as the Royals' closer, securing four saves over the final two weeks. McArthur's strong finish certainly improves his chances of making the Royals' 2024 Opening Day roster, but closing is no guarantee.
More Fantasy News
Won't return in October
PKansas City Royals
Elbow
September 24, 2024
McArthur (elbow) will not return in 2024, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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Dealing with Grade 1 UCL sprain
PKansas City Royals
Elbow
September 17, 2024
McArthur, who was placed on the 15-day injured list Tuesday, was diagnosed with a Grade 1 UCL sprain in his right elbow and will be shut down from throwing for 5-to-7 days, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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Goes on IL with sprained elbow
PKansas City Royals
Elbow
September 17, 2024
The Royals placed McArthur on the 15-day injured list Tuesday with a right elbow sprain.
ANALYSIS
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Diagnosed with elbow tightness
PKansas City Royals
Elbow
September 16, 2024
McArthur exited Monday's game against Detroit due to right elbow tightness.
ANALYSIS
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Exits with trainer
PKansas City Royals
Hand
September 16, 2024
McArthur left Monday's game against the Tigers with a right hand injury, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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