Homers Have Been David Price’s Achilles Heel During Otherwise Strong Stretch
BOSTON — It appears David Price’s luck finally has caught up to him.
The Red Sox left-hander delivered another strong outing Tuesday night at Fenway Park, striking out 11 Baltimore Orioles batters over eight innings while allowing just five hits and at one point retiring 19 consecutive batters.
But his performance wasn’t good enough, as two of those hits were home runs that were enough to lift Baltimore to a 3-2 win and hand Price his third consecutive loss.
Price’s fortunes have done a complete 180 since the first two months of the season, in which he boasted a 7-1 record despite a 5.11 ERA. He’s allowed just seven earned runs in three starts since then, but taken the loss every time.
What’s more frustrating for Price is that his few mistakes have proved costly: 11 of the last 14 earned runs he has allowed have come via the long ball. The Red Sox ace has allowed four home runs in his last two starts — solo home runs to San Francisco Giants batters Brandon Belt and Mac Williamson in a 2-1 loss; and a two-run shot by Manny Machado and a Jonathan Schoop solo homer in Tuesday’s defeat.
“When you throw a lot of strikes and are around the plate, you’re going to give up some hard contact,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said of Price after Tuesday’s loss. “I think it’s somewhat unrealistic to think he’s going to go out and throw a shutout every ballgame, and he’s been on the short end of some games where we’ve been shut down offensively.”
Indeed, Price has received minimal run support of late, as Boston hasn’t scored greater than five runs in any of his last four starts. But the Red Sox broke the bank on the 30-year-old veteran this offseason so he could win the low-scoring pitching duels, not lose them, a fact that’s certainly not lost on Price.
“I don’t care if I’m pitching against a No. 5 (starter) or I’m pitching against a Low-A team. I expect to go out there and get 27 outs and put up nine zeros,” Price said after the game. “… I haven’t done that yet, but I’m definitely throwing the baseball better. I know good things are coming my way, so I’m just going to continue to put in the work and trust the process.”
Even with his struggles with the long ball, Price has started to return to ace form. His string of seven consecutive quality starts — at least six innings pitched with three or fewer earned runs — is the longest active streak in the American League, and he boasts a 2.68 ERA over that stretch.
But Price also has allowed at least one homer in six of those seven starts, and eliminating the long ball should be the veteran’s top priority if he wants to turn his luck around.
“As the game goes on, I want to get better, and for the most part, I did that,” Price added. “But one pitch in this game can lose it for you.”
Thumbnail photo via Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports Images
