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Red Sox Reportedly Have 'Preferred Path' For Connelly Early, Payton Tolle originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Boston Red Sox fans may not see Payton Tolle or Connelly Early on the Opening Day roster.
After each making their MLB debut late last season, the rookie pitchers are competing for a place in Boston's big-league rotation. The No. 5 spot may not go to either young southpaw, as MassLive's Chris Cotillo said Johan Oviedo has the "inside track" on rounding out the starting staff behind Garrett Crochet, Ranger Suarez, Sonny Gray and Brayan Bello.
How will that affect Boston's premier pitching prospects? According to Cotillo, the Red Sox would option Tolle and Early to Triple-A Worcester rather than have either pitch from the bullpen.
Service time could sway Boston's choice. The Red Sox can gain an extra year of team control on each player if Early and Tolle spend 35 and 46 days in the minors this season, respectively.
However, that's not the only reason the Red Sox may send them to Worcester.
"The organization feels that both, despite flashes of brilliance in the big leagues down the stretch, could use more minor league seasoning, too," Cotillo wrote. "Tolle has just one professional season (and three Triple-A starts) under his belt while Early, despite having been drafted a year earlier, pitched just 28 2/3 innings for Worcester before being called up. That factor, plus the service time considerations at play, make it clear that the preferred path is both pitching out of the WooSox rotation once late March rolls around."
Tolle allowed 12 runs (11 earned) in 16 1/3 innings for the Red Sox last season. He served up five home runs and eight walks in the brief audition.
Early may have a stronger case to make the rotation after posting a 2.33 ERA, 29 strikeouts and four walks in 19 1/3 innings. Still, the Red Sox acquired Oviedo because he delivered a 3.57 ERA in nine promising starts for the Pittsburgh Pirates last year.
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