Written by Dayn Perry at CBS Sports.com
Troubling news out of Red Sox camp, as prized lefty David Price has undergone an MRI because of soreness in his left elbow. He’ll miss his scheduled Sunday start. As Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald tweets, the results of the MRI aren’t known yet, but Price is likely to see Dr. James Andrews for a second opinion.
Also, the team is understandably worried:
Price has experienced a similar kind of soreness in springs past, but never to this intensity. “We’re concerned,” Farrell said.
— Tim Britton (@TimBritton) March 2, 2017
Price, 31, is going into the second year of a seven-year, $217 million contract with Boston. Last season, he pitched to a 3.99 ERA and 4.56 K/BB ratio in a major-league leading 230 innings. For his career, he owns an ERA+ of 124 across parts of nine big-league seasons. Price has also been a remarkably durable pitcher throughout most of his career. He’s registered at least 200 innings in six of the last seven seasons.
The Red Sox, who won the AL East last season, are deeply committed to winning in 2017. This past offseason they added lefty Chris Sale in trade and did so at great cost.
As for fallback options, Eduardo Rodriguez seems most likely to step in should Price be out for some time (assuming Steven Wright makes the rotation). The Sox also have Joe Kelly on the active roster, and he has experience starting. Henry Owens and Roenis Elias also provide Boston with rotation depth. For now, though, the Sox will very much be hoping that Price’s elbow isn’t seriously injured.
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