The Boston Red Sox won’t be using kid gloves with Connelly Early.
Early was promoted from Triple-A Worcester on Tuesday, and will immediately be placed in the rotation to make his MLB debut during the middle game of a series with the Athletics — where he’s already being asked quite a bit.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora placed high expectations on the rookie during in his appearance on “WEEI Afternoons” on Tuesday.
“Good pitcher,” Cora said. “I’ve been watching his outings the last few days — the changeup is real, fastball command is good. He has a big arsenal, and he’s not afraid to attack the strike zone.
“(WooSox manager Chad Tracy) feels like he’s going to be okay at this level, there was a little bit of an adjustment going from Double-A to Triple-A because of the strike zone, but he was able to make the adjustment and is pounding the strike zone… It’s his first big league start, in a meaningful game, so just give us five or six (innings) and we’ll give the ball to the bullpen.”
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The Red Sox made some corresponding roster moves after promoting the young pitcher, placing pitcher Dustin May and infielder Vaughn Grissom on the 15-day and 60-day injured list, respectively.
Early, a fifth-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, compiled a 2.83 ERA across six starts (28 2/3 innings) at Triple-A Worcester — giving him a combined 2.60 ERA across 100 1/3 frames with Double-A and Triple-A.
The Red Sox and Athletics will take the field at 10:10 p.m. ET, with full coverage beginning an hour early on NESN.
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