Connelly Early

2023
• Drafted in the fifth round (151st overall) by the Boston Red Sox in the 2023 MLB Draft.
• Earned All-America honors from NCBWA (First Team), Perfect Game (Second Team) and Collegiate Baseball Newspaper (Third Team).
• Named the Charlottesville Regional Most Outstanding Player after striking out 10 batters in 6.1 innings pitched against East Carolina in the Regional Final.
• Matched the Virginia single-season record and was one of seven pitchers nationally to record 12 wins in 2023.
• Third Team All-ACC selection.
• Co-led the ACC and was tied for second in NCAA with 18 starts
• In three NCAA Tournament starts went 2-1 with a 1.96 ERA over 18 innings pitched. Fanned 20 batters and walked only four.
• Sported the fifth-lowest ERA in the ACC (3.09). Also ranked in the top-10 in the league in strikeout to walk ratio (4.35 – 7th), walks allowed per nine innings (2.34 – 8th), strikeouts per nine innings (.10.31 – 10th) and WHIP (1.20 – 10th).
• Won his first six starts of the season, holding opponents to three earned runs in 26.2 innings in that span.
• Struck out 10 batters twice, 10 over 6.2 innings against High Point on March 21 and 10 against East Carolina on June 4.
• Led the staff with seven quality starts, including two in the NCAA postseason.
• Preseason: ranked No. 32 on D1Baseball.com’s Top 50 Impact Transfers prior to the 2023 season

PRIOR TO VIRGINIA (ARMY WEST POINT)
• Won back-to-back Patriot League Championships at Army
• NCAA Regional pitching experience in 2021 (Lubbock Regional) and 2022 (Hattiesburg Regional)
• Logged 122 innings, making 30 appearances and 16 starts in two seasons with the Black Knights. Struck out 127 batters while sporting a 2.95 career earned run average.
• His 88 strikeouts in 2022 were tied for the ninth-most in a single season by an Army pitcher.

2022
• Voted Patriot League Pitcher of the Year and was a First Team All-Patriot League selection as a starter.
• Selected to the ABCA/Rawlings All-Northeast Region Second Team.
• Presented with the Colonel Russell P. “Red” Reeder Baseball Award, presented annually to the most valuable player at USMA
• Moved into the weekend rotation as a sophomore, earning the Friday spot
• Made a team-best 14 starts in 16 total appearances as a sophomore and posted 7-4 record with a 3.26 ERA through 85.2 innings of work. He struck out 88 batters while limiting opponents to a .219 batting average.
• Led the Patriot League in strikeouts with 88 and averaged the fewest hits allowed per nine innings (7.25) in the league. His 3.26 ERA was the second lowest in the Patriot League and his seven wins were the second most in the conference.
• In the Hattiesburg Regional against host Southern Miss, tossed 6.0 innings, allowing just one earned run while fanning eight.
• Tossed his first complete game against Navy, throwing 7.0 innings to earn the win on April 23, 2022
• Fanned a career-high nine batters in back-to-back contests against Bucknell on April 30, 2022 and Lehigh May 7, 2022.

2021
• Second Team All-Patriot League selection.
• Appeared in 14 games while making two starts as a freshman.
• Was 4-2 with a 2.23 ERA (2nd lowest on staff) in 36.12 innings.
• Struck out 39 batters and held opponents to a team-best .185 batting average.
• His WHIP of 1.13 was the lowest on the team.
• Did not allow a run in a combined six innings pitched in the Patriot League Tournament, the 11th pitcher since 1994 to now surrender a run in a minimum of six innings in tournament play.

JAMES RIVER HIGH SCHOOL CENTER FOR LEADERSHIP AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
• All-State, All-Region and All-Metro pitcher in 2019.
• Perfect Game Preseason All-American.
• Perfect Game All-Tournament.
• Member of the National Honor Society.

PERSONAL
• Born in Richmond, Va.
• Son of Todd Early & Anne McNeil
• Has three siblings – Coleman, Cabell and Callum
• A Religious Studies Major