Zach Eflin

Zachary Adams Eflin (born April 8, 1994) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). The San Diego Padres selected him in the first round (33rd overall) of the 2012 MLB draft, and traded him to the Phillies in 2014. Eflin made his MLB debut with the Phillies in 2016.

Zach Eflin
Eflin with the Phillies in 2016
Philadelphia Phillies – No. 56
Pitcher
Born: (1994-04-08) April 8, 1994
Orlando, Florida
Bats: Right Throws: Right
MLB debut
June 14, 2016, for the Philadelphia Phillies
MLB statistics
(through August 12, 2020)
Win–loss record25–32
Earned run average4.70
Strikeouts333
Teams
Medals
Men's baseball
Representing  United States
Pan American Games
2015 Toronto Team

Early life

Eflin was born in Orlando, Florida. He attended Paul J. Hagerty High School in Oviedo, Florida.[1][2] In his senior year, he had an 0.51 earned run average (ERA) and 59 strikeouts in 43 innings pitched.[1] Eflin signed a National Letter of Intent (NLI) to attend the University of Central Florida (UCF) on a college baseball scholarship.[1][2]

Career

San Diego Padres

Following his high school career, the San Diego Padres selected Eflin in the first round, with the 33rd overall selection, of the 2012 MLB draft.[3] Rather than enroll at UCF, Eflin signed with the Padres, receiving a $1.2 million signing bonus.[4]

Eflin began his professional career in 2012 with the AZL Padres in the Arizona League, with a record of 0–1 with a 7.71 ERA in seven innings.[5][6] His performance was hampered by mononucleosis.[7]

He pitched for the Fort Wayne TinCaps of the Class A Midwest League in 2013. Eflin was 7–6, and his 2.73 ERA led the league, as he had 86 strikeouts in 118.2 innings.[8][6]

In 2014, Eflin pitched for the Lake Elsinore Storm of the Class A-Advanced California League, and he finished the season with a 10–7 win–loss record and a 3.80 ERA, with 93 strikeouts in 128 innings.[9][6]

Philadelphia Phillies

On December 18, 2014, the Padres traded Eflin, Joe Wieland, and Yasmani Grandal to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for Tim Federowicz, Matt Kemp, and cash.[10] The Dodgers then traded Eflin, along with Tom Windle, to the Philadelphia Phillies for Jimmy Rollins.[11]

Baseball America named him the 4th-best prospect in the Phillies minor league system prior to the 2015 season.[8] The Phillies invited Eflin to spring training as a non-roster player.[12] Eflin spent the 2015 season with the Reading Fightin Phils of the Class AA Eastern League,[13][14] and pitched to an 8–6 record with a 3.69 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP (tied for 9th in the league), with 68 strikeouts in 131.2 innings.[8] He was the April 12 Eastern League Pitcher of the Week, and a mid-season Eastern League All Star.[15] He pitched for Team USA in the 2015 Pan American Games, which won the silver medal.[8]

Eflin received another invitation to spring training in 2016.[16] Eflin began the 2016 season with the Lehigh Valley IronPigs of the Class AAA International League, and was named the league's Pitcher of the Week on April 18.[17] With Lehigh Valley, he was 5–2 with a 2.90 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 68.1 innings.[6]

Eflin made his MLB debut on June 14, 2016,[18] at 22 years of age, allowing eight earned runs by the Toronto Blue Jays in ​2 2⁄3 innings on nine hits, three of which were home runs. Eflin's game score of five was the sixth-worst debut in major league history, and worst in Phillies franchise history.[19] Eflin rebounded with two complete games in the month of July, including a Maddux shutout of the Atlanta Braves.[20][21] The Phillies placed Eflin on the disabled list on August 9 due to patellar tendinopathy in both knees, and he underwent season-ending knee surgery ten days later.[22][23] In 2016 with the Phillies, he was 3–5 with a 5.54 ERA, and 31 strikeouts in 63.1 innings.[15]

Eflin began the 2017 season on the 10-day disabled list in an effort to continue recovery from both knees. He was activated on April 11 and optioned to Triple-A.[24] He was the April 17, 2017 International League Pitcher of the Week.[15] On April 18, he was recalled by the Phillies to replace Clay Buchholz in the rotation. His season debut was the same night against the New York Mets. In 2017 with the Phillies, he was 1–5 with a 6.16 ERA, and 35 strikeouts in 64.1 innings.[15] That season with Lehigh Valley, Clearwater, and the GCL Phillies he was 2–4 with a 3.74 ERA and 50 strikeouts in 55.1 innings.[6]

In 2018 with the Phillies, Eflin was 11–8 with a 4.36 ERA, and 123 strikeouts in 128 innings.[25] With Lehigh Valley, he was 2–2 with a 4.05 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 20 innings.[6]

For the 2019 season, Eflin began the season in the rotation before being placed on the disabled list on May 31 with a back injury.[26] In 2019 with the Phillies, Eflin was 10-13 with a 4.13 ERA, as in 32 games (28 starts) he pitched two complete games (leading the National League) and one shutout over 163.1 innings in which he gave up 28 home runs (8th).[27]

Personal life

Eflin's father, Larry, played college football for Temple University. His paternal grandfather is a pastor.[28]

gollark: It's interesting, but just randomizing the changes would be way too slow.
gollark: Everyone manages some other people and is managed by some too.
gollark: Idea: replace the boring tree structure of hierarchical companies with arbitrary randomly generated graphs.
gollark: No, to predict the consequences of any company action ever.
gollark: You can get an idea of what things are likely or unlikely. The monetary incentive is somewhat important.

References
  1. Lyon, Austin (June 1, 2012). "Family challenges don't keep Hagerty ace from becoming top draft prospect". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved October 13, 2014.
  2. Parker, Brandon (May 11, 2012). "Baseball has been a lifeline for Zach Eflin". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 13, 2014.
  3. Lyon, Austin (June 4, 2012). "Zach Eflin and Walker Weickel both taken by San Diego Padres in MLB draft". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved October 13, 2014.
  4. "PADRES: Second pick Eflin signs below slotted amount". U-T San Diego. June 16, 2012. Retrieved October 13, 2014.
  5. "Eflin goes a career-best seven innings". U-T San Diego. May 29, 2013. Retrieved October 13, 2014.
  6. Zach Eflin Minor Leagues Statistics & History | Baseball-Reference.com
  7. "Pitchers Fried, Eflin, Weickel visit Petco Park". U-T San Diego. September 10, 2012. Retrieved October 13, 2014.
  8. Zach Eflin Stats, Fantasy & News | MLB.com
  9. Connifff, Jon (September 23, 2014). "Under the radar, Zach Eflin making a name for himself". Fox Sports San Diego. Retrieved October 13, 2014.
  10. "Padres acquire OF Matt Kemp". ESPN.com. December 18, 2014. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
  11. Stephen, Eric (December 19, 2014). "Jimmy Rollins trade finalized by Dodgers, Phillies". truebluela.com. Retrieved December 19, 2014.
  12. "Eflin excited for Spring Training start". Courier-Post. March 29, 2015. Retrieved January 25, 2016.
  13. "Zach Eflin impressive in season debut". Philly.com. April 12, 2015. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  14. "Philadelphia Phillies prospect Zach Eflin sparkles in Reading Fightin Phils debut". MiLB.com. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  15. Zach Eflin Stats, Highlights, Bio | MiLB.com Stats | The Official Site of Minor League Baseball
  16. "Phillies invite top prospects to spring training". philly-archives. Retrieved January 25, 2016.
  17. "Eflin, Alfaro earn weekly honors; IronPigs reach milestone". The Morning Call. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  18. "IronPigs pitcher Zach Eflin to make next start with Phillies". The Express-Times. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  19. Stolnis, John (June 14, 2016). "Zach Eflin's debut was one of the worst in MLB history". The Good Phight.
  20. Lauber, Scott. "Phillies starter Zach Eflin dominates Royals in 7-0, complete-game victory". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved May 12, 2019.
  21. Perrotto, John (July 22, 2016). "Zach Eflin Tosses 1st Shutout in Phillies' Win Over Pirates". CSN Philly. Archived from the original on July 26, 2016. Retrieved August 10, 2016.
  22. Zolecki, Todd (August 9, 2016). "Knee issues force Phillies' Eflin to DL". MLB.com. Retrieved August 10, 2016.
  23. Breen, Matt (August 19, 2016). "Zach Eflin has season-ending knee surgery". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  24. Harris, Ben. "Eflin activated, optioned to Triple-A".
  25. Zach Eflin Stats | Baseball-Reference.com
  26. Phillies Place Zach Eflin On 10-Day IL - MLB Trade Rumors
  27. "Zach Eflin Stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  28. Breen, Matt (March 14, 2015). "Hats off to Eflin's inspiring message". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
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