The Red Sox legend spoke to WEEI recently, and gave his opinion on why David Price will bounce back in 2018.
If you have followed the Boston Red Sox for the last two years, you have seen the ups and downs with David Price.
When Boston signed Price two years ago now, they needed him to be the ace. They paid him to be an ace. But here we are now, and the expectations on Price seem fairly low for next year.
Yes, the burden of carrying a contract with an AAV of $31 million over seven years is heavy expectations. But for once, things are quiet on the David Price front in Boston.
To some people, the issues that the Red Sox have had with Price seem misconstrued. We all know about the infamous incident with Dennis Eckersly, but that stuff happens all the time when two guys with big egos are in the same room. A lot of people claimed that the Red Sox did not have a true leader in 2017, and Price was somehow the reason for this.
Despite that, Price has the full backing of his teammates, and a Red Sox legend in Pedro Martinez.
Martinez appeared on WEEI’s Trenni and Tomase to talk about all things Red Sox, including Price.
"“The problem is sometimes I see miscommunications between him and the media and the way he handles these things,” said Martinez. “I think everything is going to change this year, first of all, because he’s going to be healthy.”"
He also went on to comment about how Price was beloved for what he did in the postseason.
"“When we saw David Price come out of the bullpen and do what he did for Boston, everybody embraced him. I think everything revolves around that. You perform out there, you do what Chris Sale is doing, everybody embraces it.”"
These are high regards from one of the best pitchers in franchise history. Martinez had his spats with the Boston media when he played for the Red Sox, but when you go out there and shove every fifth day, the fans and the media will love you.
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We saw a pretty good version of Price in 2016, but it was overshadowed by Rick Porcello. Maybe in 2018, with the expectations low on Price, we can see him return to that ace he once was.
Last year seemed like a bit of a lost season for Price, who was limited to 11 starts due to elbow discomfort. His overall numbers look appealing on the surface, although they get a boost from the five relief appearances he made down the stretch. Price owned a 3.82 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 8.6 K/9 as a starter last season. Those are not the numbers we are used to seeing from the lefty and the limited workload was even more uncharacteristic.
Price will be fully healthy for spring training, which is just a couple of weeks away. He will be the number two pitcher in the rotation from Opening Day. With a healthy David Price, nd a strong performance from the rest of the pitching staff, the Red Sox could be in prime position to win the AL East yet again in 2018.
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