Yesterday we got some more bad news on the injury front. Big trade acquisition Connelly Early was shut down from his rehab after feeling forearm tightness. The team insists it is minor and that they are not concerned. However, that is certainly not the update you want to hear.
Despite the messaging about the team not being concerned, I am certainly worried. For a guy who was out with an elbow injury, experiencing forearm tightness on rehab is the last thing you want to hear. Fans have heard this update plenty of times before only to be told that the pitcher needs Tommy John Surgery a couple weeks later.
The new front office better hope that Early does not need any elbow surgery because if he does, it would be a really bad look. From the outside, it would sure seem like Paul Toboni got played by his former boss Craig Breslow if that is the outcome here. However, we are not there yet.
One other thing that raised my eyebrows was the fact that it was reported that Early is not getting an MRI. In Spencer Nusbaum’s piece, it was stated that Early “did not need an MRI”. I feel like it would be good practice to just get one anyways just to make sure everything is fine. What is the downside of doing that?
The worst thing that could happen is that Early doesn’t get an MRI, starts throwing before getting shut down again, only to find out he does in fact need surgery. If the Nats really want to proceed with extreme caution, an MRI needs to be part of the process.
It was reported that Early got an MRI after his initial injury in Boston, and there was no structural damage. However, after another arm related issue, they should check again. I am trying not to jump to conclusions here, but this just reads like the type of update you get before someone goes under the knife.
Even if Early is healthy and this is just a minor setback, he would be racing against time to get back on the mound. Presumably, he will not throw for at least a week or two and after that he will have to build back up. Once he gets through his rehab process, he will only be able to make a couple starts before the season is over.
It was true when the trade was made and even more true now, but Paul Toboni has a lot riding on Connelly Early. He started the deconstruction of an elite offense to go get his guy from Boston despite the fact Early was on the shelf. Toboni needs Early to work out, or else the fanbase will start getting grumpy.
There is still plenty of time before we can fully announce the winner of the Bennett for Perales swap, but so far Boston has the upper hand. If another trade with his old club gets off to a bad start, that would be tough optics. Toboni is pretty lucky that Mead is on the shelf and not mashing right now.
Toboni has done a phenomenal job this year developing hitters in the majors and minors. However, his trades with the Red Sox are off to a less than ideal start. For the sake of everyone involved with the team from the front office to the fans, Connelly Early needs to be healthy ASAP.
