With the way the schedule lines up, David Price would be slated to start Game 5 of the ALDS if the series goes that far. Considering Price has been horrific during the postseason throughout his career, that could be a major problem for the Boston Red Sox.
Can John Farrell really send a pitcher who is 0-8 in playoff starts out to the mound in an elimination game? When asked on Monday if there could be a situation where left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez starts over Price, Farrell did not rule it out.
“There could be. Yeah, there could be,” he said, per John Tomase of WEEI.com. “Price has more relief experience than Eddie. Again, to try to forecast that, I don’t know. That’s way ahead of my thinking right now.”
Farrell also noted that Price could be called upon to pitch in relief in Game 3, so it’s possible he simply doesn’t want to look too far ahead.
“Hopefully there isn’t a spot where he has to come in in the midst of an inning,” Farrell said. “Depending on how long or how much (Drew) Pomeranz would pitch tonight (in relief), that potentially puts (Rodriguez) and/or David in that same spot tomorrow. Ideally we’d like to keep the switch-hitters on the right side of the plate, even at Fenway Park. That’ll all be dependent upon game, inning and situation.”
It’s amazing that we’re even having this conversation. The Red Sox knew all about Price’s postseason struggles, but they still signed him to a seven-year, $217 million contract last offseason. Obviously, they were hoping he could get the monkey off his back. He didn’t do that in Game 1, lasting just 3 1/3 innings in a 6-0 loss to the Cleveland Indians.
Perhaps Dustin Pedroia could give Price some advice like he did earlier in the season, but it seems clear that the former AL Cy Young Award winner’s issues are mostly between the ears. That can be a tough problem to solve.
