In his first start, Early used his sinker against lefties to get ahead, turning to sweepers and curveballs to put them away. Against righties, he kept everything down in the zone and "pitched backwards". He used his breaking stuff early in at-bats, turning to more four-seam fastballs and changeups later in counts. He executed his plan, striking out 11 Athletics over five shutout innings.
Payton Tolle's Major League debut was one to remember. The hard-throwing left-hander fanned eight over 5 1/3 sharp innings Friday night, electrifying the Fenway faithful and offering fans a glimpse into the future. Greg Weissert allowed back-to-back doubles, and both runs were charged to Tolle in an eventual 4-2 loss to the Pirates, yet it was still a largely promising opening act for the highly regarded rookie.