LaCourse Slider Draws A Lot Of Buzz At Super 60

Luke LaCourse RHP / 3B / Bay City Western, MI / 2025

MCCOOK, Ill. - Luke LaCourse certainly made an impression at the Prep Baseball Super 60 on Sunday at the MAX just outside of Chicago. The Bay City Western senior not only established a record at the 23rd edition of the event, but blew the mark away for all-time slider spin rate average.

The 6-3 225-pounder’s 3451 topped the previous best of 3040 by Luke Guth of Franklin Area, Pa. in 2023. The second-rated 2025 right-handed pitcher in Michigan topped out with a 3516 spin rate, while hitting a max velocity of 82.9 on the pitch. Reid Worley of Cherokee, Ga. had the second best spin rate of the day with 3174.

“In the midst of basketball season, LaCourse still provided some electricity at the Super 60,” explained Shooter Hunt, the vice president of scouting for Prep Baseball. “He ripped off sliders with more than 3500 rpm which is something that I had never seen before.”

"Atta boy. Good work buddy, that's a lot of fun" - Shooter Hunt

We had VP of Scouting, @ShooterHunt on the mic during the @luke_lacourse3 𝙀𝙇𝙀𝘾𝙏𝙍𝙄𝘾 bullpen on Sunday at the #Super60 ⚡ @PrepBaseballMI | @MizunoSportsUSA | @DICKS | @SeanDuncan729 pic.twitter.com/VhYAsBpIqr

— Prep Baseball (@prepbaseball) February 4, 2025

The highly-regarded senior right-hander admitted it was not difficult to get pumped up to show what he had.

“It definitely gets the adrenaline going,” LaCourse said with a laugh about being able to perform at the Super 60. “I find that I perform better when the pressure is on in those moments. I feel like I get into what’s called ‘flow state’ and my body just takes over and I perform to the best of my abilities. The pressure is gone once you get on the mound because I have so much trust in the work that I have put in this offseason.”

It was memorable to be part of the Super 60, which included records set in the 60-yard dash, max batted distance, highest average peak bat speed and fastball spin rate, in addition to the slider spin rate mark set by LaCourse.

“The event was amazing,” the 87th-ranked senior RHP in the nation said. “It was more than even I expected with the atmosphere. The place was filled with scouts and others, and being able to perform in an environment like that was so much fun. It was amazing to be around so much other talent. 

“I think the highlight for me was just being able to show everything I have,” the 17-year-old continued. “I came into the pro circuit very late last year and the East Coast Pro event was the only event where I've been able to show what I had in front of scouts, so this event was great for me to get in that light again and show off the hard work that I’ve been putting in. I showed some velo, had good control, and showed that I naturally can spin the ball effectively. It’s great to do it in front of pressure like that.”

LaCourse featured a 92.8 mile an hour fastball that averaged of 89.7. The spin rate average of 2569 is the sixth best all-time at the Super 60, with his top spin rate on the day 2680.

“The fastball was super hoppy and the shorter arm stroke seemed to allow it to play up even more,” Hunt noted.

The 253rd-ranked 2026 in the country also threw a changeup that averaged 84.4 with a max horizontal movement of 15.9.

“What I can take from my performance is to just keep honing in on my craft,” related the Michigan State commit. “I just need to hammer down what I’ve been working on because it’s gotten me so far to this point, while continuing to work on my third and fourth pitches, my cutter and slider, and make them effective pitches to use more in the future.”

His performance did not surprise Adam Goodwin, Prep Baseball Michigan Director of Scouting.

“I’ve followed Luke for some time now, and his track record speaks for itself,” Goodwin pointed out. “He’s been a big factor in the success for Western High and Midland Berryhill Post 165. The separator is how he handles his preparation day to day and how committed he is to the process of getting better. 

“His showing in Chicago comes as no surprise to us. He represented Michigan in a very positive light.”

It did not go unnoticed by those watching 73 of the top seniors in the country representing 28 states.

“A handful of scouts talked to me after,” the third-rated senior in Michigan said. “Having talked to some of them already, it was an awesome feeling. It means the absolute world to me. Going into last year I had no idea that this was even a possibility for me to be in the situation I am now, so any conversation I have with a scout means so much to me.”

But the work is far from done.

“Although the event was awesome and I performed well, I'm even more excited to show scouts how I throw in games,” LaCourse explained. “I feel that’s when I perform my best. I’m not just a guy who has good stuff, I'm a guy who can pitch and get outs and I'm excited to show that this spring season.”

The expectations are high as Hunt summarized.

“Already a sleeper favorite out of the midwest, expect the buzz to grow louder after his performance in Chicago,” Hunt concluded.