Todd Early: Everything you need to know

Early (5-4) took the loss Monday against the Rays, allowing two runs on five hits and four walks in 4.2 innings. He struck out six. Early struggled with his control Monday, matching a season worst in walks allowed while tossing only 54 of his 96 pitches for strikes. On a more positive note, however, the 24-year-old right-hander did extend his streak of starts with at least five strikeouts to six. Early will carry a strong 3.30 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 69:27 K:BB over 71 innings into his next scheduled outing at home versus the Rangers.

Early (3-5) took the loss Tuesday as the Red Sox fell 4-2 to the Orioles, giving up four runs on six hits and a walk over 5.1 innings. He struck out six. The 24-year-old southpaw fanned at least five batters for a fifth straight start, but homers by Coby Mayo in the second inning and Pete Alonso in the third saddled Early with the loss. It's the third time in his last four starts that Early has served up multiple long balls, but he's done a good job of limiting the damage against him otherwise, posting a 3.42 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 24:5 K:BB in 23.2 innings over that stretch. He'll try to keep the ball in the yard in his next outing, which is scheduled to come on the road this weekend against the Yankees.

Early (5-2) notched the win Wednesday against Atlanta, allowing no runs on four hits and three walks in seven innings. He struck out seven. The 24-year-old left-hander had his entire pitch mix working Wednesday, filling the zone for 65 strikes (97 pitches) in a scoreless gem. It was the second time during the month of May that Early spun seven shutout frames, and he also registered his fifth quality start in his last eight outings. Early, who has given up more than three runs just once this year, will carry a strong 2.95 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 57:22 K:BB over 61 innings into his next scheduled appearance against the division-rival Orioles.