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Connelly Early to Make Washington Nationals Debut on Saturday
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- Connelly Early to Make Washington Nationals Debut on Saturday
(David Butler II-Imagn Images)
The wait is officially over: Connelly Early is set to make his debut with the Washington Nationals .
Manager Blake Butera revealed ahead of the start of the final series of the 2026 regular season that left handed pitcher Connelly Early will take the mound on Saturday in game two of the three game series against the New York Mets . In addition to Saturday marking Early's debut with the team, this marks Early's first MLB appearance since he lasted four innings against -- the Nationals -- back on June 30.
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Early has been sidelined since then after suffering left elbow inflammation, initially being placed on the 15 day injured list before he was traded less than one month later to the Nationals in exchange for third baseman Curtis Mead . Though Mead would go down in his first game with the organization after suffering a hand injury, the Nationals remained patient with Early's recovery amid multiple rehab outings, including postponing his recovery process after Early expressed discomfort midway through his first appearance with the organization.
President of baseball operations Paul Toboni remained optimistic that Early's debut would ultimately materialize this season even if that appeared to be an unlikely path, especially after the Nationals shut down ace pitcher Cade Cavalli fresh off his new contract extension.
Early's last outing marked his lone outing through June when he did not allow an early run through the month of June, while he owns a 7-5 record with a 3.44 ERA and 1.25 WHIP across 17 appearances. Early has tossed 93 strikeouts in 91.2 innings, though his extended 2026 appearance came in the first extended MLB action for the Virginia native.
A former fifth round pick in the 2023 Draft by the Red Sox , Early made his MLB debut back on Sept. 9 against the Athletics when he tossed a scoreless five innings with 11 strikeouts in a dazzling debut, one of five appearances through the 2025 season.
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Early is expected to join Cavalli as a key building block for the Nationals' rotation in 2027, though what other moves the front office makes to upgrade the rest of the rotation and bullpen is undoubtedly the top focus for the front office. The Nationals comfortably set the MLB record for the most blown saves in a season, a feat that manager Blake Butera is looking to flip ahead of the 2027 regular season.
