David Price finished the 2017 season strong, but the start of the campaign wasn’t as such.
The Boston Red Sox left-hander battled injuries throughout the first half of the season, and his battles with the media resulted in a lot of negative attention.
But all of this is in the past, and one Red Sox legend believes a great 2018 awaits Price. Speaking on WEEI’s Trenni & Tomase, Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez explained why things will be different for Price next season.
“He’s really smart. He’s a fun loving guy. He’s been that fun-loving guy here, too,” Martinez said. “The problem is sometimes I see miscommunications between him and the media and the way he handles these things. I think everything is going to change this year, first of all, because he’s going to be healthy. That’s one thing that would get me frustrated, listening to questions from the media when I was hurt. When I was hurt, I did not want to hear questions. I did not want to hear jokes. I did not want to hear many things. I think he’s going to be healthy. I think the media is going to have a blast watching this guy pitch.”
Price began to turn things around in the latter portion of the 2017 regular season and really ramped things up in the playoffs. Martinez believes that was just a glimpse of what’s to come for the five-time All-Star.
“We saw it during the postseason,” he said. “When we saw David Price come out of the bullpen and do what he did for Boston, everybody embraced him. I think everything revolves around that. You perform out there, you do what Chris Sale is doing, everybody embraces it.
“Now when you’re struggling and you’re hurt and you can’t show everybody else what you’re capable of doing, it’s a little bit frustrating, so for the media, they start digging to ask when are you going to pitch, when are you going to feel better, when are you going to be able to contribute with the team. It’s frustrating. I don’t blame him for feeling a little bit cranky. But at the same time, I expect the media to really just stop and look at this guy perform. And I think he’s going to be able to do that because he’s healthy, he’s got enough rest. And they will see how much fun he is and how good of a guy he is.”
Martinez rarely failed the Red Sox during his tenure in Boston, so the team must surely is hoping this trend continues with his expectations for Price.
