Red Sox
Boston’s reshuffled rotation has Garrett Crochet in line to start the Red Sox’s first postseason game later this month.
After dominating the Athletics in his first big-league start last week, Red Sox prospect Connelly Early is set to face the A’s once again in his second outing with Boston.
This time, the 23-year-old lefty will head to the mound at Fenway Park.
The Red Sox announced Monday that Early will start Boston’s series opener against the A’s Tuesday night at Fenway. First pitch is set for 6:45 p.m.
Early will be followed in Boston’s rotation by righty Lucas Giolito (10-3, 3.31 ERA) on Wednesday, while fellow righty Brayan Bello (11-7, 3.25 ERA) will start Thursday’s series finale in a matinee matchup in Boston.
Early had a stellar showing against the A’s in his first taste of big-league action last week, striking out 11 batters over five scoreless innings of work in what was a 6-0 Red Sox victory on Sept. 9.
Early — listed as Boston’s No. 6 prospect by MLB Pipeline — tied a Red Sox record for the most strikeouts ever by a pitcher in his MLB debut. He also became just the third MLB pitcher ever to give up zero runs and one or fewer walks while striking out 10 or batters in their big-league debut.
A rematch in such short order could create more hurdles for Early, given that the A’s have more of a book on the rookie when it comes to his delivery and arsenal of pitches.
Still, there was a lot to like about the body of work that Early submitted last week, as he recorded 19 swing-and-miss pitches over his five innings against the A’s.
Early earned the nod for Boston’s series opener over Boston’s other crop of younger pitchers in Payton Tolle and Kyle Harrison, with the latter potentially utilized as more of a long-relief option down the stretch.
After an electric start against the Pirates in his big-league debut (5.1 innings, eight strikeouts on Aug. 29), Tolle has labored as of late, giving up seven runs over his last five innings of work across two starts.
By giving the ball to Early on Tuesday after an off day, the Red Sox have the option to give Early another look as a starter before turning back to their top pitchers as the playoff race continues to heat up.
After Giolito and Bello close out his homestand against the A’s, ace Garrett Crochet could be in line to start Friday’s series opener against the Rays, while Tolle would conceivably start on Saturday after an extended break between starts.
By adjusting this rotation moving forward, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe noted that Giolito, Bello, and Crochet would all be in line to start against the Blue Jays next week in Toronto — while Crochet would also be projected to start a potential postseason opener on Sept. 30 on regular rest.
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