Connelly Early is a young professional baseball player, but he now has firsthand knowledge of how quickly everything can change.
For Early, the latest change will be moving to Washington D.C., after the Red Sox traded him to the Nationals late Saturday night in exchange for infielder Curtis Mead.
A fifth-round pick by the Red Sox in 2023, Early hasn’t dealt with the suddenness of a trade until this weekend. But just hours after the deal was announced, the 24-year-old posted a farewell to Boston and the Red Sox on his Instagram page.
“Boston, words are impossible to describe the amount of joy and happiness you have brought to my life,” he wrote. “I play this game because baseball provides me peace and shows me how to be present no matter the result. The relationships I have made throughout the organization will forever be held in my heart. To my teammates and staff who I consider my Boston family, it’s part of it but damn has it been so good.”
Early also made a trip to the Red Sox clubhouse on Sunday morning to say goodbye to his teammates and coaches in person, according to interim manager Chad Tracy.
“He mostly came in today just to give a ton of hugs to people that mean a lot to him and made his rounds,” Tracy said. “So it was cool to see. Definitely sad to see him go.”
Tracy was also asked how Payton Tolle is “holding up,” as the fellow young lefty has developed quite a friendship with Early in their time together in the Red Sox organization.
“He’s OK,” Tracy said of Tolle. “He was one of the first ones here. I checked on him, too. Obviously, Connelly’s close with everybody but those guys are buddies.”
Early rose quickly through Boston’s minor league system, pitching once for Salem in 2023, moving from High-A Greenville to Double-A Portland in 2024 and then Worcester in 2025 before getting called up to the majors last September.
He made four starts in September before taking the mound for Game 3 of the Wild Card Series in Yankee Stadium. Now after making 17 starts in his first full season in the majors, he’s heading to Washington.
“Looking forward to having my cleats in the dirt at Nationals Park,” Early concluded.
