From Military Formation to Starting Rotation

It’s a cold April evening in Reading, Pennsylvania. Portland Sea Dogs left-handed pitcher Connelly Early briskly walks back out to the mound. Picks up the rosin bag, slightly tossing it around in his hand before stepping onto the rubber. He swipes a pile of dirt with his right leg before settling in. It’s something he does before every pitch like clockwork.

Baseball players, especially pitchers, are creatures of habit and rhythm. They have a certain routine that they go through when they throw. Whether it’s pawing at the dirt with their right leg, a certain motion in their windup or straightening their cap, they have to do it. Some might compare a pitcher’s routine to that of a robot or a soldier. Every movement is calculated. If they stray away from rhythm, trouble soon follows.

Now standing tall on the mound, Early looks towards home plate, envisioning where he wants the ball to go. He’s hunting for his eighth strikeout of his outing. Right before he starts his windup, he pauses, takes a deep breath, and blinks. When he opens his eyes, he’s no longer on the mound, he can no longer hear the roar of the crowd coming to its feet. Instead, he hears a bugle playing reveille and shouting from drill instructors around the quad. The sights and sounds are all too familiar to Early. He’s back at Army West Point, standing in formation, waiting for instruction on a PT drill as his day as a cadet begins.

From the moment he rolls out of bed, his ability to do things on his own initiative dwindles. His first month and a half at West Point during his freshman year was strictly military training.

“You are embracing the suck every single day with your classmates and being told what to do and you have to complete the tasks that they give you. Early explained. “They call it the first month of feast…it’s not a great time when you are there, but after that you get into the school year.”

Additionally, he must follow a regimented schedule with a break in between classes due to being on the baseball team for practice and training.

“It’s a crazy experience for sure…there’s a lot of stuff that you have to deal with that you might not really want to deal with,” Early said. “Everything builds discipline and builds character while you’re there.”

One of the 12 core values of West Point is discipline. The first President of the United States George Washington once said that “discipline is the soul of an army.” It’s not just a rule, but a foundational element that makes a small army formidable, allows the weak to succeed, and fosters respect. It’s a principle that Early used every single minute he was a cadet.

“That school and the military academy just gives you a certain sense of pride being there, it means more than just baseball there.” Early stated. “It really builds your character and helps you become a lot more disciplined.”

Going to school at a service academy brings different obstacles that an ordinary college student doesn’t have to worry about. In addition to his regimented schedule, Early and his fellow cadets had to make sure that they could pass inspections of their look, living areas, and anything else the instructors deemed judgeable.

“You have to make sure you look good, that you’re dressed properly, and that your room’s tidied up.” Early said. “Most people don’t have to endure that in the first couple years of college…I think that it puts everybody at West Point at a little bit of an advantage coming out of college just because they’ve already learned how to be disciplined and know a lot about time management.”

Early learned rather quickly to adapt to the high expectations that West Point instilled into his life and he credits a lot of his success in baseball to his time at West Point and staying disciplined out on the mound. Not straying away from his fundamentals and mechanics, showing trust by not shaking off catchers, and keeping his routine fluid were just a few ways he used discipline on the rubber.

“I put a lot of attributions to West Point.” Early exclaimed. “Going there for the first two years really made me who I am and has allowed me to play the game of Baseball for a pretty long time.”

The Midlothian, VA product spent two seasons at Army with the bulk of his work coming in 2022. In that season, he posted a 3.26 ERA in 16 appearances while striking out 88 hitters. Following the 2022 season, Early decided to leave West Point and transferred to the ACC baseball powerhouse, the University of Virginia.

In one season with the Cavaliers, Early posted a 12-3 record over 19 appearances, 18 starts, and racked up 100 strikeouts. Through his efforts, the Cavaliers won the ACC Coastal Division Title and made a berth in the College World series, but were bounced in the first round.

Following that season, Early was selected in the fifth round of the 2023 MLB Draft by the Boston Red Sox. All of the lessons in discipline had paid off in the long run.

“It was amazing, getting that call from my agent telling me that I had been drafted by the Red Sox.” Early said. “It was a dream come true…but at the same time once you get that call, it’s like ok now it’s time to turn it on and see how long I can play the game for and how far I can get.”

His bright future wasn’t even on his mind during his time at the Military Academy. It was just survival. Early starts the PT workout and jumps over the obstacle on the ropes course. When he lands, he blinks again and now the crowd noise starts to rise, he’s back on the mound in Reading. The lessons in discipline from West Point are with him in his memories. All of the hard work and embracing the suck that he endured rests comfortably in the back of his mind. Comes set, starts his windup and fires in a fastball on the outside corner of the plate. Strike three.