Price boosting rotation, finally
ARLINGTON, Texas — “Saving Private Ryan” played on the big screen in the Red Sox clubhouse yesterday afternoon. David Price seemed not to notice. And he seemed not to care.
Price walked to and from his locker, turning sideways to squeeze between a table and a group of teammates playing cards, as if it were just another day.
When at his seat, Price ran a laser-therapy wand over his left elbow, stimulating the muscles in preparation for the task at hand. When he put on his uniform, it was with a long-sleeved shirt underneath even in 91-degree heat.
And when Price went to the mound, it was to deliver his first scoreless start of the year, going six innings with nine strikeouts for the Red Sox’ sixth win in a row, an 11-4 whipping of the Texas Rangers.
Breaking through all the noise of his well-publicized elbow injury and well-vented media frustrations, this much seems clear: Price has been getting himself ready to pitch and pitch well.
“I knew it was going to take time,” he said. “I had a torn elbow, so that’s part of it.”
This was the first time that Price publicly acknowledged the nature of the injury. It’s been a season loaded with potential distractions. It started with that spring training elbow issue, continued through a lengthy rehab process and the birth of his first son. It’s been irritated by a blister and a cracked fingernail, and it’s most famously been interrupted by high-profile confrontations with members of the media, first with a CSN reporter at Yankee Stadium and then with NESN analyst Dennis Eckersley on the team charter out of Boston.
“Standing up for my teammates,” Price said. “Whatever crap I catch for that, I’m fine with it.”
The whole saga has been strange and unpredictable, but it hasn’t kept Price from getting ready to pitch. His mid-90s velocity has been higher than last season. He had some control issues earlier in the season, but has walked just three batters in his past three starts. Last night was only his second nine-strikeout game since July 10 of last season.
“The amount of focus, rehab and strengthening that individual pitchers go through a lot of times results in increased stuff,” Sox manager John Farrell said. “I vividly remember the day David got the soreness. It was a sim(-ulated) game in which he was throwing really hard in spring training. We saw early in camp that there was additional power. And it’s continued after the time down.”
If this continues through the second half, the Red Sox might have the team they envisioned heading into spring training. From the moment they acquired Chris Sale, they were a team headlined by starting pitchers.
And at long last, that rotation is beginning to live up to the hype.
Price delivered perfectly winnable starts his past five times out, Rick Porcello just had his best start of the year Monday, Drew Pomeranz has a 2.72 ERA in his past 10 starts, and Sale deserves to start the All-Star Game.
Even the rotation depth improved with Eduardo Rodriguez making a rehab start last night, Brian Johnson scheduled to make one tonight and Doug Fister now in the fold as a veteran presence who presumably could slide into the bullpen if the Sox want him to stick around after Rodriguez gets healthy.
These Red Sox weren’t designed to lean heavily on their bullpen, which they had to do early in the season, and they weren’t necessarily built to be an offensive juggernaut, not after David Ortiz retired.
But the bullpen has been better than expected, and the offense seems to have really found it stride in the past month or so. The missing piece, it turns out, has been a truly potent rotation.
And the key to that just might be a truly potent Price.
“It’s probably the strongest we’ve seen him in the year-plus he’s been here,” Farrell said. “(Last night), clearly, as he was able to elevate and get some swing and miss, it was an area he could go to. He’s very aware when he’s on the mound. He’s a very aware guy to begin with.”
Even with all the potential distractions around him, Price seems cognizant of what it takes to get ready. He seems ready for whatever comes next.
“It’s just getting repetition out there, and confidence in my health is there,” Price said. “That’s not something I think about. . . . I’m still getting ready the same way. Still don’t watch video. Don’t look at scouting reports. I’m going to go out there and pitch my game. That’s what I’ve always done.”