Cubs reliever Scott Effross pitched his fourth scoreless inning of the Spring on Saturday. He followed up with his fifth yesterday, putting himself one step closer to a spot in the Cubs’ Opening Day bullpen.
And I intentionally include the word “hopefully” there because Effross’ sidearming approach is so much fun to watch pitch.
Effross released the ball more towards third base than any other pitcher during the 2021 baseball season.
When throwing over the top, the righty said he always stood on the third-base side of the rubber, so when the switch to sidearm happened in late 2019, he continued to pitch from there.
After he got comfortable, the Cubs and Effross saw the advantages of the extreme angle from which balls were entering the zone.
Anecdotally, we know that being different is a good thing. It’s something the Rays have put a premium on in their own bullpen design.
We also know that having a low release point benefits, in general, because the Vertical Approach Angle (VAA) has been a popular topic in baseball for a few years.
Effross made four pinch starts for a depleted Iowa Cubs pitching staff after being promoted to Triple-A in June.
Effross was excellent the rest of the season, split between AAA and MLB, after returning to short relief: 42 IP, 25 H, 2.14 ERA, 9 BB, 46 K.
He kept lefties to a.593 OPS, which is incredible for a right-handed sidearmer, who you’d expect lefties to have a lot of success against.
Is Scott Effross Married?
Scott Effross is currently married to his childhood bestfriend Britt Effross.