Boston Red Sox
“The game will dictate what we do.”
For the second week in a row, Connelly Early was making quick work of the A’s on the mound.
The 23-year-old Red Sox rookie was seemingly in complete command in his first start at Fenway Park on Tuesday, working into the sixth inning with under 80 pitches logged.
Boston had only pushed one run across the plate, but it looked like it was going to be enough for Early, who had limited the A’s to zero runs through the first five innings of work.
But after Early’s 80th pitch of the evening — a plummeting change-up out of the strike zone — was whiffed at by Nick Kurtz for a strikeout, Alex Cora made his way out of the dugout with one out in the sixth inning.
Early’s night was over, with the lefty receiving a standing ovation from the Fenway crowd after yet another strong outing.
Those cheers turned to groans in short order.
By the time Early received the hook, the A’s had one player on base: Jacob Wilson — courtesy of a screaming single hit out to third.
Rather than stick with Early, Cora opted to roll with reliever Greg Weissert, calling on the righty to protect Boston’s one-run lead and end Early’s night with a clean sheet.
But, after striking out All-Star DH Brent Rooker, Weissert made it a new ballgame.
On a 3-2 pitch with two outs in the frame, Weissert delivered a fastball down the middle that Tyler Soderstrom clanged off the Green Monster, tying the game and handing Early the first earned run of his big-league career.
After a walk, the A’s capitalized against Weissert again, as Brett Harris drove in Soderstrom with a sharp single to left to make it a 2-1 game.
“3-2 pitch right down the middle,” Cora said of Soderstrom’s game-tying hit. “He was trying to go up in the zone, didn’t get it there. That was his pocket right there. The kid did an amazing job. They had some tough righties coming up and we just have to close the deal.”
That score held for the rest of the night — another frustrating result for a Red Sox team that has had a knack as of late for squandering strong starts from their rookie pitchers.
Speaking after the loss, Cora said that the Red Sox’s decision to take out Early was not due to any workload issues or pitch restrictions.
Rather, Boston’s manager said he wanted to avoid keeping Early in against a right-handed slugger in Rooker.
“It’s about the guy that is hitting,” Cora said. “The game will dictate what we do. That’s a good big leaguer that hits lefties really well. The other guys have to do their job.”
Even though Early is still a young starter trying to find his footing in the big leagues, the Red Sox weren’t hesitant with keeping him on the mound during his MLB debut last week in Sacramento.
Early threw 90 pitches in that win over the A’s, and looked no worse for wear on Tuesday as he continued to make quick work of the opposition. Early’s final stat line was one earned run over 5.1 innings with five hits, zero walks, and seven strikeouts.
When asked about his quick hook, Early also pointed to Boston wanting to chase a favorable matchup against Rooker.
“Pretty sure I was pulled right before Rooker came up,” Early said. “Weissert is a really good matchup against him. So that’s why we went with that. I struggled a little bit against him the first time, and he saw me pretty well. So I think that’s kind of why we went with it.”
Tuesday was another frustrating result for Weissert, who also squandered a lead after Payton Tolle’s impressive MLB debut at Fenway on Aug. 29.
“We lose that game because I can’t do my job,” Weissert said postgame, per MassLive’s Chris Smith. “It’s so important to get it to those guys [late-inning relievers Garrett Whitlock and Aroldis Chapman]. We’re fighting all game. Early pitches an unbelievable game and I go in there and do that [expletive]. It sucks.”
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