January 12, 2024

Official Ottawa Titans News Release

Ottawa, Ont. - The Ottawa Titans have announced the signing of Canadian left-handed pitcher Evan Grills for the upcoming 2024 Frontier League season.

Grills, 31, returns to the Titans following a dominant 2022 campaign in the capital. The lefty went 4-6 with a 3.53 ERA that ranked top-10 in the league over 15 starts, working 99 1/3 innings, and striking out 110. Grills strung together three starts of double-digit punchouts, which included 15 in the team's inaugural home opener. Eight of his starts included allowing three earned runs or fewer and working into the seventh inning or beyond 10 times.

The Canadian was selected in the 10th round by the Houston Astros in the 2010 MLB Draft out of Sinclair Secondary School in his hometown of Whitby, Ont. The 6-foot-4 lefty reached triple-A twice in his minor league career, with both the Astros and Colorado Rockies organizations.

Named to the Houston Astros 2016 organizational All-Star team, Grills was a career 36-32 with a 4.25 ERA over 608 innings pitched in the minor leagues. After being released by the Astros, Grills signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies, earning an invite to major league spring training in 2018. He’d go on to spend his final two minor league seasons in both double-A and triple-A, going a combined 5-8 with a 4.50 ERA across 128 innings pitched.

After originally signing with the Titans for the 2021 season, Grills was granted his release to pursue an opportunity in the Chinese Professional Baseball League with the CTBC Brothers. On the Taiwanese side, Grills went 1-1 with a 5.82 ERA in three appearances, tossing 17 innings.

The now nearby St. Albert, Ont., product is familiar with professional baseball on his home soil as in 2020, he pitched for the American Association’s Winnipeg Goldeyes. That year, he emerged in 11 games, sporting a 3-2 record over 38 2/3 innings pitched.

The Ottawa Titans open the 2024 season on Friday, May 10 against the New England Knockouts. The Titans’ home opener is scheduled for Tuesday, May 21 versus the Tri-City ValleyCats at Ottawa Stadium.