One Key For Connelly Early In Rematch Vs. Athletics
Early can't use the same approach twice
Connelly Early was excellent in his major league debut. He pitched five innings, striking out 11 Athletics in a 6-0 Boston Red Sox victory.
Early is scheduled to make his second career start on Tuesday, once again against the Athletics. Facing the same team twice in such a short span is a difficult task for any pitcher, let alone a first-year pitcher.
The more times a pitcher goes through a lineup, the more difficult it is to get outs. The more times a hitter sees a pitcher, the more the scales tip towards the hitter. While the statistics show more of an advantage within a game, familiarity with a pitcher is never a bad thing, which is why Early will be challenged on Tuesday.
In his debut, Early faced a lineup with six righties and three lefties. The Athletics will likely deploy a similar lineup on Tuesday. His approach against lefties is fine and should be repeatable. He used a sinker-heavy approach, trying to jam lefties early, and used his curveball and slider to put them away. With more familiarity, Athletics’ lefties might be ready for his sinker, meaning he’ll have to locate inside with more precision to avoid trouble, but there are no inherent flaws with the approach.
Against righties, he could have more problems. In his first outing, he “pitched backwards” to righties, using his breaking pitches to get ahead, and mixing in more fastballs later in counts. The approach worked as he struck out seven of the 14 righties he faced.
While the strategy worked, it might not be repeatable. Early’s ability to consistently spot his secondary pitches below the zone allowed the fastball to get by hitters for called strikes. If hitters are ready for fastballs, though, they’re very hittable due to their location.
Early threw his fastball in the zone, where it’s susceptible to damage. If hitters are ready for them, he could have a hard time converting two-strike counts into outs. Rather than pitching for called strikes, the Red Sox rookie can elevate his fastball where hitters will be prone to swinging and missing. The low fastball can still be a weapon, but more variation will be necessary because he’s facing the same team for the second time in as many weeks.
It will be difficult for Early to repeat his performance from the first outing. Five shutout innings is difficult to do against any major league opponent. Pitching against the same team in consecutive starts only makes it more difficult.
