David Price to make 2017 debut on Monday
The Boston Red Sox could use a starting pitcher, and they’ll finally get David Price back soon.
Very early in spring training, before he could even make a Grapefruit League start, David Price was sidelined by elbow soreness. Slow progress has come since then, and Price recently made his second rehab start without great results (six runs allowed, three earned, over 3.2 innings). But velocity was apparently not an issue, and according to Tim Britton of the Providence Journal, Price will make his 2017 debut Monday against the Chicago White Sox.
Outside of Chris Sale, who has lived up to his billing after being acquired in an offseason trade, the Red Sox starting rotation has been a mix of underachieving (Drew Pomeranz, Rick Porcello) and injury-thinned (Price and Steven Wright). A 25-21 record reflects that, though a series sweep of the Texas Rangers this week is a sign of life for Boston.
After signing a seven-year, $217 million deal in December 2015, Price had a good first season with the Red Sox in 2016. He led the American League innings pitched with 230, making a career-high 35 starts with 228 strikeouts and a 2.0 BB/9 rate. A 3.99 ERA reflects just a bit a bad luck (3.60 FIP), but Price also allowed an American League-high 227 hits while facing a league-high 951 batters. That kind of workload could have predicted this spring’s elbow issue, when taken in concert with Price’s career workload of over 1,600 innings.
Price’s injury this spring also shows the general folly in giving a 30-year old pitcher (at the time) a deal that will average just over $30 million a year until his age 37 season. That said, getting Price back is great news and much needed for the Red Sox.
Next: One 2017 x-factor for each MLB team
As should be obvious, Red Sox manager John Farrell acknowledged the likelihood Price will be on a pitch count Monday afternoon. That limited workload could easily go for a couple starts beyond that, depending on how Price feels. As long as the Red Sox recognize that having him available for important starts late in the season is not worth risking anything in late May or early June, his return should go smoothly.