Larry Brown Sports

Those who are planning to purchase tickets to the Tampa Bay Rays season opener against the Baltimore Orioles on April 2 can still do so through the team’s ticket office, but you might want to hold off until tomorrow. David Price has 100 tickets that he is planning to give away to folks who are in the Tampa area on Thursday.

Price made the announcement on Wednesday morning and told his followers that it would be smart to wear their Rays gear around the Tampa area tomorrow. He has retweeted a few people who talked about wanting the tickets, but said that he will decide on a time and place on Thursday.

I get 100 tickets to opening day!! If you live in the Tampa area be ready cause I’m giving all these away!! #k-9 twitter.com/DAVIDprice14/s…

— David Price (@DAVIDprice14) March 27, 2013

Athletes giving away tickets on Twitter never gets old, especially with all the stupid stuff we are used to seeing on social media from most of them. Price is not the first nor the second athlete to do something like this, but that doesn’t make the offer any less generous.

H/T Hardball Talk

Tampa Bay Rays ace David Price is going to command the type of salary that very few teams can afford if he hits the free agent market in a few years. Naturally, one of those teams are the New York Yankees.

However, Price recently said that he would never sign a long-term contract with the Yankees because their organization has rules that are too old school — like its facial hair policy.

“I wouldn’t stay there very long then,” he told John Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. “I wouldn’t sign a long-term deal there. Those rules, that’s old-school baseball. I was born in ’85. That’s not for me. That’s not something I want to be a part of.”

Since it’s extremely rare to hear a player say he would never play for a franchise like the Yankees, Price’s comments created a ton of buzz throughout the sports world. On Thursday, the left-hander softened his stance a bit.

“It probably wasn’t the best thing to say, but I didn’t mean anything by it,” Price told reporters, via CBS New York. “I wasn’t looking to offend the Yankees. It’s probably the best organization in all of sports. Not just baseball, but all of sports. I didn’t mean anything (against) the New York Yankees. I’ve had friends on that team for multiple years.”

Price isn’t set to become a free agent until 2016, but don’t think for a second his agent Bo McKinnis didn’t give him a lecture about how dumb it is to eliminate the team with the deepest pockets in the league as a potential suitor.

“I can’t rule out anybody because, obviously, what they do for the game of baseball is just tremendous,” Price continued. “I was talking about Joe (Maddon). I was talking about the way we do everything over here, how he lets us be comfortable in our own skin. And that’s what I was referring to.”

In the event that Price does hit free agency rather than signing an extension with the Rays or any other team he might be traded to, the Yankees would be a valuable commodity. Even if he was telling the truth and would never consider playing in New York, you never want to discourage potential bidders.

H/T Hardball Talk

Evan Longoria and Jaime Edmondson are expecting their first child this week. Being the generous guy that he is, Longoria’s Tampa Bay Rays teammate David Price wanted to buy the couple something useful from their baby registry. After all, I can’t imagine there’s much a former Playboy Playmate and a professional baseball player can’t afford to buy for their child on their own.

According to USA Today, Price asked Longoria for some feedback on what he should get from the registry. From the sound of it, he was given an honest answer.

“A breast pump,” Price said. “Hey, Evan told me to buy a breast pump. So I bought a breast pump. Most expensive thing on the registry and I have to buy it.”

Such is life for a guy who will make $10 million in 2013 and probably another $200 million before his career is over if he remains healthy. Breast pumps can cost around $300, but relatively speaking a $300 gift from Price is like a $15 gift from someone who makes $50,000 a year. The flamethrower should have no problem affording it. That’s what friends are for.

The Tampa Bay Rays have David Price under team control for a few more seasons, but history would tell you they are not opposed to trading him before their time with him is up. Price is 27 years old and one of the best left-handed starters in the game. If he continues to pitch the way he has over the past few seasons, he could be destined to become the highest-paid pitcher in MLB history.

If the Rays are unable to afford signing Price to a long-term extension, they could look to trade him while he still holds a ton of value. As John Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reminded us, they traded James Shields to the Kansas City Royals when he was still two years from free agency.

Price understands that his time in Tampa may be limited, but he doesn’t sound like a guy who is simply going to sign with the highest bidder in three years. For example, he has a very specific reason why he doesn’t envision himself pitching for the New York Yankees.

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Some people are stoked to have baseball back because that means their favorite team is in action. Others are pumped because they get to draft a new fantasy baseball team. But for us at LBS, the return of baseball means the return of weird baseball injuries. Luckily we’ve already had a few of them.

Rays pitcher David Price only pitched two innings instead of three Thursday because of neck spasms. The spasms were caused when he wiped his neck off with a towel. No joke.

“I was drying my head off after the second inning. It’s happened to me two times before. I catch the back of my head and it pulls my head forward,” Price said. “I felt it in the back of my neck. It was spasming, there was a little pop and it spasmed up. It gets a little tight. I’ll be all right.”

Said manager Joe Maddon: “David might need better technique when it comes to toweling himself down. He’s been doing it for 26 years now. Apparently he doesn’t have it down yet.”

This is the third time since last spring training that Price hurt himself, so maybe Maddon is right.

Below is a video of Price discussing the neck injury via The Tampa Times:

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Arbitration time can be an exciting time of the year for some players and a frustrating one for others. For guys like David Ortiz who have been looking for a long-term extension but keep agreeing on a one-year salary, it’s tedious. For a young player like David Price who is just now starting to make his millions, it’s fun. Price just reached a one-year deal with the Rays for $4.35 million. According to the Tampa Bay Times, he has at least one idea of what he could spend the money on.

“I just kind of stayed out of it,” Price explained. “I have the all the faith in the world in my agent, Bo McKinnis. He took care of me and got me what I felt like I deserve. I might ask Jeter if I can buy a wing in his house for a little while.”

Jeter, of course, has a monstrous mansion in Tampa.  He happens to have a few more bucks than Price in his bank account, but Price could be on his way to out-earning him if he stays healthy and keeps pitching the way he has the last couple seasons. Not only that, but his car would probably be safe from getting peed on at Jeter’s house.

You ever go out one night just looking to do some charity work and end up having to confront a man who is taking a leak on your car? Me neither, but I bet it sucks. David Price would know. According to the Tampa Bay Times, Price was a guest bartender at one of Joe Maddon’s charity events at a Tampa restaurant on Friday. After a night of pouring drinks for a good cause, Price walked out to his car and found a man peeing on his door.

That’s not all.  The moron apparently wanted some privacy while he was using his version of the restroom and became upset when Price confronted him.  That’s when he turned around and shoved Price and took a swing at him.  I don’t know about you, but my initial thought was that I hope he was done peeing and had put it away before turning around to throw a punch.

“I was relieved with how it turned out,” Price explained while joking that he was too quick for the guy.

Like we were quick to do with Devin Hester when he chose to not retaliate after a man in a casino smacked him for no reason, we want to commend Price for his patience and level-headedness.  If I walked into a parking lot to find a drunk guy peeing on my car, I can’t imagine I would be too pleased.  Some people would have rubbed the guy’s nose in it like he was a four-month old puppy, but Price did the adult thing and avoided a tough situation.

Thanks to NESN for passing the story along.