Red Sox land INF Curtis Mead from Nats for LHP Early
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- The Boston Red Sox traded left-hander Connelly Early to the Washington Nationals for infielder Curtis Mead in the first major trade of deadline season Saturday night.
- Curtis Mead, 25, has hit .254/.352/.500 with 17 home runs in 87 games for Washington after arriving in a late-spring trade when the Chicago White Sox designated him for assignment.
- Connelly Early, 24, owns a career 3.24 ERA with 122 strikeouts across 111 innings in 21 major league starts, though he's currently on the injured list with elbow issues doctors do not believe are structurally damaging.
- The Red Sox rank 25th in MLB in runs scored, making Mead's right-handed, pull-friendly bat attractive after pitching carried Boston to a 15-game winning streak.
- The Nationals have hovered around .500 all season due to severe pitching deficiencies despite owning baseball's best offense, which made Early a prime target.
- Boston is not expected to stop with this deal, continuing to consider larger trades for another bat with the Aug. 3 deadline approaching.
- Other teams expect Washington to next deal All-Star left-hander Foster Griffin, who has emerged as one of the top rental arms on the market.
Why it matters: Boston dealt from pitching depth to fix a 25th-ranked offense, landing a 25-year-old who has hit .254/.352/.500 with 17 home runs. Washington turned a DFA pickup into a frontline starter to address the pitching that's kept them near .500 despite baseball's best offense. The Aug. 3 deadline still has Boston hunting another bat.
