After being placed on the 60 day injured list, will the Washington Nationals see Connelly Early pitch this season?
Will Connelly Early play for the Nationals in 2026?
It’s official: The Nationals have added left handed pitcher Connelly Early, their most important acquisition from the 2026 trade deadline, to the 60-day injured list.
When Early was acquired by Washington, he was known to have elbow inflammation. Then, the young southpaw suffered a setback, developing forearm tightness as he attempted to return to play.
On the one hand, this is a bummer of a development for Nationals fans. Early still has yet to suit up for Washington, and has not yet been able to show the potential that made him a coveted trade asset.
It’s also discouraging that there is no clear timetable for his return. The 60-day designation means the Nationals don’t expect him back before the end of August, but beyond that there’s no specific date set.
But when you take a closer look, the news isn’t as bad as it seems.
Moving Early to the 60-day injured list doesn’t actually change his timetable to return much. Since he was originally put on the injured list on July 1, he will be available 60 days from then, not from now.
Early, in all likelihood, was not going to return to the team before September anyway, especially given elbow injuries are not something to trifle with in pitchers. He still may not return then, but this move doesn’t bar it from happening — it’s not exactly the same as shutting him down for the season.
In the short term, the move opened up a spot on the Nats’ 40-man roster, a spot they gave to right-handed knuckleballer Matt Waldron.
Waldron likely isn’t any type of cure-all — in fact, he was just designated for assignment by the Toronto Blue Jays after a calamitous five outings, giving up five earned runs across 4.1 innings. Waldron is just 29, though, and while he has yet to find big league success, the Nationals felt he was worth taking a flyer on.
Whether or not Waldron is better than expected, or Early makes a return, it likely won’t matter for a Nationals team that is almost certainly out of the playoff picture at 61-71. You always want to make sure a pitcher’s elbow is right, but even more so when there’s not any true reason to rush him back.
At this point, what’s most important is making sure they’re set up for the future, and making sure Early is fully healthy is part of that.
