Red Sox Postseason: Five players who need to step up in ALCS
By Sean Penney
Let’s get the obvious out of the way first. David Price added to his lengthy list of failures as a postseason starter, failing to make it out of the second inning in a Game 2 loss to the New York Yankees in the ALDS. A pair of mammoth home runs brought an early end to Price’s night but not to his role in the Red Sox rotation.
Price will take the mound in Game 2 against the Astros.
This will be the 11th start that Price has made in his postseason career. He’s still seeking his first playoff win as a starter, compiling a 0-9 record and 6.18 ERA in that role.
Alex Cora saw firsthand when he served as bench coach for the Astros last October that Price could thrive on the postseason stage. He tossed 6 2/3 scoreless innings against Houston, albeit in a pair of relief appearances. Now the Red Sox manager is asking Price to do the same as a starter.
While the Yankees clearly had his number this year, Price has had success against the Astros. He’s 1-0 with a 3.65 ERA in two starts against them this year. We may always be uneasy about Price starting a playoff game but at least we can feel better about him in this series than we did against New York.
Expect Price to be on a short leash. He shouldn’t be left in to face this dangerous Astros lineup a third time through the order but if he can give them four or five solid innings then it wouldn’t be all that different from the performance he provided in last year’s series.