For lifelong Orioles fan Greg Ross, getting signed to a minor-league contract by his hometown team in mid-January was a thrill of a lifetime.
The Loch Raven High graduate said he thought he would be assigned to Double-A Bowie or Triple-A Norfolk.
As things turned out, his time with the Orioles was brief enough — a mere three innings of work in Sarasota in minor league camp during spring training — to be considered almost nonexistent.
The right-hander was released a day after Easter.
"It was pretty shocking," Ross recalled.
His initial disappointment turned out to be the lucky break he had been waiting for in his professional career when the Washington Nationals signed him to a minor-league deal in late April.
After bouncing around the minors for five seasons, Ross is finally building a strong case to be promoted to Triple-A Syracuse or perhaps even the major leagues.
The 6-foot-3, 205-pound Ross is 4-1 for the Double-A Harrisburg Senators with a 0.56 ERA, 0.918 WHIP and has given up only 34 hits in 48 innings.
"He has opened some eyes for people in our organization who may not known who he was," Harrisburg manager Matthew LeCroy said. "He has really put himself in a good position because people are recognizing what he is doing and taking another long at his career. To me, that's the biggest thing."
The Towson native, who now lives in Perry Hall, put together a 30-inning scoreless streak that was snapped on June 29 in a loss to the Orioles Double-A affiliate Bowie.
"I am only 26, and I know I have a long career ahead of me, as long as I stay healthy," Ross said. "Do I know what it takes to get to the big leagues? I have seen teammates get called up around me, and I have worked with them. I have been grinding the last couple of years. I think its all just coming together, physically and mentally."
Harrisburg pitching coach Chris Michalak said Ross' experience is paying off more than ever this season, considering he has logged more than 700 innings, including 263 at the Double-A level.
"Sometimes it takes some guys a little bit longer than others to figure out their craft," Michalak said. "He is on the right path to go where he wants to go."
Ross is doing something Michalak stresses: throwing strikes.
He's been doing it effectively and efficiently with an impressive four-pitch repertoire that includes a fastball, slider, curveball and change-up.
"Right now, he is doing a heck of a job of executing his pitches," Michalak said of a pitcher who has allowed only 10 walks and throws consistently in the lows 90s. "He is pitching down in the zone with movement and putting the ball where he wants to. He has been doing things in such a professional way."
That was especially true during Ross' scoreless streak starting June 7 when he threw seven scoreless innings in his Harrisburg debut, a 5-3 win over Hartford.
He gave up three hits, walked one and threw 76 pitches.
"My first four starts were eerily similar," Ross explained. "It was seven scoreless innings four straight times. It kind of pushed me to work harder."
Michalak admired Ross for putting up so many zeros on the scoreboard.
"It was special and pretty neat to watch," he said. "The biggest thing was anytime he seemed to have any kind of trouble, he never shied away from contact. He just kept making big pitch after big pitch and getting big out after big out. It was really fun to watch."
Before this season, Ross spent five years in the Atlanta Braves organization.
An 18th round pick in the 2011 Major League Baseball Draft out of Division III Frostburg State University, Ross pitched in Double-A Mississippi in both 2014 and 2015 before becoming a free agent in the winter.
"I just had a chip on my shoulder after being released by the Orioles," Ross said. "It left a bad taste in my mouth. I just wanted to go out there and proved to teams that I belonged. The Nationals gave me an incredible opportunity."