When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Ellard throws a fastball 83.3% of the time, against 44.9% when he is ahead.
108 pitches behind in the count, 78 ahead.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .400 expected average against them, against .196 on his breaking balls.
220 of his fastballs thrown.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Ellard's sinker moves 118.7 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
49 thrown, averaging 93.7 mph.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Ellard's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 94.7 mph, against 84.5 off his slider.
168 and 85 of them thrown.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Ellard releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 26 degrees above horizontal and 2.5 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
329 tracked release points, averaging 5.6 feet off the ground.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Ellard goes to the slider: 35.3% of his two-strike pitches, against 21.6% the rest of the time.
102 two-strike pitches in 2025.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Ellard's 4-seam fastball carries 14.6 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
168 thrown, averaging 94.9 mph.
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Ellard averages 91.8 mph across his arsenal, 80th percentile in the league.
329 pitches in 2025. 80th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 160th in MLB.
He cannot find the zone often enough
Ellard works off the plate, with only 43.5% of his pitches in the zone, 20th percentile.
329 pitches in 2025. 20th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 627th in MLB.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Ellard throws the sinker 25.9% of the time against left-handers and 4.2% against right-handers.
167 pitches to right-handers, 162 to left-handers.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Ellard throws a strike on the first pitch 50.7% of the time.
75 plate appearances started in 2025.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Ellard throws 39.5% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 44.9% with the bases empty.
86 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 243 with the bases empty.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Ellard works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider, Sinker and Changeup. The 4-seam fastball is 51.1% of everything he throws.
329 classified pitches in 2025.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Ellard lands 50.5% of his fastballs in the zone and only 34.1% of his breaking balls.
220 of his fastballs, 85 of his breaking balls.
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Ellard's stuff spins at 2,405 rpm, 76th percentile in the league.
329 pitches in 2025. 76th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 189th in MLB.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 90.0 mph off the bat against Ellard, 26th percentile.
329 pitches in 2025. 26th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 580th in MLB.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Ellard's 4-seam fastball averages 94.9 mph, and has touched 97.6.
168 thrown, 51.1% of his pitches.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Ellard projects a .354 average, 26th percentile.
329 pitches in 2025. 26th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 580th in MLB.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
18.2% of Ellard's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
60 of 329 located pitches.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Ellard's 4-seam fastball spins at 2,535 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
168 thrown in 2025.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Ellard releases the ball 6.2 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
329 tracked pitches in 2025.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
43.8% of the contact Ellard gives up is hit hard, 32nd percentile.
329 pitches in 2025. 32nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 527th in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Ellard puts 50% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 43.6% when he is ahead.
108 located pitches behind, 78 ahead.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
9.9 mph separates Ellard's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 94.9 against 85.0.
168 and 85 of them respectively.
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The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
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When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Ellard throws a fastball 83.3% of the time, against 44.9% when he is ahead.
108 pitches behind in the count, 78 ahead.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Ellard goes to the slider: 35.3% of his two-strike pitches, against 21.6% the rest of the time.
102 two-strike pitches in 2025.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Ellard throws a strike on the first pitch 50.7% of the time.
75 plate appearances started in 2025.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Ellard puts 50% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 43.6% when he is ahead.
108 located pitches behind, 78 ahead.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .400 expected average against them, against .196 on his breaking balls.
220 of his fastballs thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Ellard lands 50.5% of his fastballs in the zone and only 34.1% of his breaking balls.
220 of his fastballs, 85 of his breaking balls.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Ellard's sinker moves 118.7 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
49 thrown, averaging 93.7 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Ellard's 4-seam fastball carries 14.6 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
168 thrown, averaging 94.9 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Ellard's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 94.7 mph, against 84.5 off his slider.
168 and 85 of them thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Ellard throws the sinker 25.9% of the time against left-handers and 4.2% against right-handers.
167 pitches to right-handers, 162 to left-handers.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Ellard works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider, Sinker and Changeup. The 4-seam fastball is 51.1% of everything he throws.
329 classified pitches in 2025.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Ellard's 4-seam fastball averages 94.9 mph, and has touched 97.6.
168 thrown, 51.1% of his pitches.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Ellard's 4-seam fastball spins at 2,535 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
168 thrown in 2025.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
9.9 mph separates Ellard's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 94.9 against 85.0.
168 and 85 of them respectively.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Ellard releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 26 degrees above horizontal and 2.5 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
329 tracked release points, averaging 5.6 feet off the ground.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Ellard releases the ball 6.2 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
329 tracked pitches in 2025.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Ellard averages 91.8 mph across his arsenal, 80th percentile in the league.
329 pitches in 2025. 80th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 160th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He cannot find the zone often enough
Ellard works off the plate, with only 43.5% of his pitches in the zone, 20th percentile.
329 pitches in 2025. 20th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 627th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
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He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Ellard throws 39.5% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 44.9% with the bases empty.
86 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 243 with the bases empty.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Ellard's stuff spins at 2,405 rpm, 76th percentile in the league.
329 pitches in 2025. 76th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 189th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
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When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 90.0 mph off the bat against Ellard, 26th percentile.
329 pitches in 2025. 26th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 580th in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Ellard projects a .354 average, 26th percentile.
329 pitches in 2025. 26th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 580th in MLB.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
43.8% of the contact Ellard gives up is hit hard, 32nd percentile.
329 pitches in 2025. 32nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 527th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
18.2% of Ellard's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
60 of 329 located pitches.
White Sox
Career team 2024–2025