New York Yankees get Jewish pitcher at MLB trade deadline

He wears a Star of David necklace when he pitches

Scott Effross in action during a game against the Philadelphia Phillies on July 24, 2022. Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images

By Jacob Gurvis August 1, 2022

(New York Jewish Week) — A self-described “Seinfeld enthusiast” is headed to the Yankees.

The Bronx Bombers traded for Jewish relief pitcher Scott Effross Monday, sending a minor league pitcher to the Cubs in return for the right-hander.

The sidearm pitcher made his major league debut last August, appearing in 14 games for the Cubs. In 2022, the 28-year-old, who is technically still a rookie, has pitched in 47 games for Chicago, striking out 50 with an earned run average of 2.66. Effross has surrendered only two home runs and 11 walks in 44 innings.

A native of Twinsburg, Ohio, a suburb roughly halfway between Cleveland and Akron, Effross attended the now-defunct Congregation Shir Shalom. He wears a Star of David necklace when he pitches.

The Cubs selected Effross in the 15th round of the 2015 MLB Draft after three stellar years at the University of Indiana.

The Yankees are currently the top team in Major League Baseball, and with the trade deadline looming Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET, the Effross acquisition supplies the Yankees with a solid replacement after multiple injuries hampered the team’s bullpen.

The Yankees also recently drafted Jewish pitcher Eric Reyzelman, a hard-throwing righty and the son of two Jewish immigrants from the Former Soviet Union.

For more Jewish sports news, check out the Jewish Telegraphic Agency’s Jewish Sport Report newsletter.

This article originally appeared on JTA.org.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO