Boston Red Sox left-handed pitcher Connelly Early was placed on the 15-day injured list a day after exiting his start against the Washington Nationals on Tuesday.
Early left the game with left elbow inflammation and is scheduled to get more imaging done to gauge the severity of the injury.
The 24-year-old has had a wonderful start to his young career, and he was on his way to recording the Red Sox' 13th consecutive quality start before feeling discomfort. Early tossed 4.0 innings and allowed no runs on three hits.
He threw 61 pitches and said he felt the pain on his final pitch of the night.
"It's tough," Early said, per MLB.com. "I thought I was throwing the ball really well. I felt really good going into the game, so just a little unfortunate thing that happened there."
The rotation has been a bright spot in a dark season for Boston who fell to 37-47 after losing 8-1 last night, and it'll have to step up even more with Early slated to miss a significant amount of time.
When Could Connelly Early Return?
The earliest Early could return is Thursday, July 16 - exactly 15 days since being placed on the 15-day IL. However, his timetable is still undetermined until he gets further testing on his elbow. Of course, the concern with these types of injuries is the potential for it to require Tommy John surgery - which would keep him out for the rest of the season.
Hopefully the Red Sox get good news in the coming days and Early can avoid going under the knife.
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