John Farrell believes David Price could be huge for the Boston Red Sox come playoff time.
With Boston’s magic number to clinch a postseason berth sitting at four games Monday, a lot of the talk surrounding the team has transitioned to how it’s going to get through teams like the Cleveland Indians and Houston Astros, who both have locked up their respective divisions, in October. And Price could be a factor, as the left-handed starter was activated from the 10-day disabled list Thursday and threw two perfect innings Sunday out of the bullpen against the Tampa Bay Rays.
“He hadn’t pitched in a game in seven weeks, he threw two simulated games, and you know what?” Farrell said Tuesday on MLB Network Radio. “He threw some pitches the other day in Tampa that I don’t know if he’s thrown that well in the year-plus he’s been here. He threw a backdoor cutter to (Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan) Longoria that to me was just — you marvel at. And when you see a really good hitter react like he did to the pitch, it kind of tells you something.”
The Red Sox manager even said the team would consider using Price like the Cleveland Indians used (former Red Sox) reliever Andrew Miller last postseason, pitching him on back-to-back days. Farrell didn’t give his full endorsement of that idea just yet, though.
“At this point, I’m not going to rule it out,” Farrell said. “But I think we’ve got to get through these first, these final 12 or so games what’s remaining here with some frequency of use not — it’s all going to depend upon how many pitches he’s thrown the day before, how stressful, and where we are with other guys.”
Thumbnail photo via Patrick McDermott/USA TODAY Sports Images
