ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. --- David Price looked comfortable and content back in the place where he enjoyed so many highlights early in his career.
Ironically enough, Price made his postseason debut in 2008 at Tropicana Field against Boston. The left-hander was the winning pitcher in Game 2 and earned the save in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series, as Tampa outlasted the Red Sox in a seven-game classic to reach the World Series.
Nine years and more than 260 [...]
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. --- David Price looked comfortable and content back in the place where he enjoyed so many highlights early in his career.
Ironically enough, Price made his postseason debut in 2008 at Tropicana Field against Boston. The left-hander was the winning pitcher in Game 2 and earned the save in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series, as Tampa outlasted the Red Sox in a seven-game classic to reach the World Series.
Nine years and more than 260 appearances will have passed before Price takes the ball for the first time in 2018 on Friday. He’ll start the 7:10 p.m. matchup opposite Blake Snell, hoping to put the injuries that dogged him throughout last year squarely in his rearview mirror.
“This is what I’ve done my entire life,” Price said. “This is the one thing I know. To be able to do that for us from the beginning of the year and expect to do it for the entire year, it’s a good feeling.”
Elbow troubles sidelined Price for the final month of spring training in 2017 and limited him to just 11 starts. He was used out of the bullpen in the A.L. Division Series loss to Houston and is eager to rejoin a rotation that also features previous Cy Young Award winner Rick Porcello and perennial contender Chris Sale.
“We have great defense,” Price said. “Our three outfielders are all extremely solid. Our infield, catchers, bullpen – I don’t know what we’re not going to do well, and that’s good.”
Price enjoyed a strong spring with the Red Sox, allowing just five hits and striking out 13 in 12 innings of work. More than the results, the way he feels physically has Price encouraged entering the third year of the seven-year deal he signed with Boston prior to 2016.
“I feel like every year in spring training there’s about a two-week period where I have to take it easy,” Price said. “To not have that this year, to be able to work on stuff in bullpens, to be able to go out there and throw as hard as I wanted in bullpens and in games, to be able to throw everything – that was different for me. I enjoyed that.”
Walden, Poyner poised for Major League debuts
It was a particularly special Thursday afternoon for two members of the Red Sox bullpen.
Marcus Walden and Bobby Poyner had never appeared on an Opening Day roster before the 4 p.m. first pitch. The two navigated distinctly different paths to reach this point, with Walden toiling through three seasons of Winter League ball and Poyner rising steadily after being selected by Boston in the 14th round of the 2015 draft.
“I was going to keep playing until they took the jersey off my back, honestly,” Walden said.
“I’ve been so happy with how my progression through the minor leagues has gone with Boston,” Poyner said. “They’ve been great.”
Walden was drafted in the ninth round by Toronto in 2007 but pushed down in the pecking order after a front office shakeup and Tommy John surgery. He was in the unaffiliated Atlantic League as recently as 2015, but the unwavering support of his wife, Nichole, and a refined cut fastball have given the right-hander a new lease on his professional life. Walden struck out 86 in 105 2/3 innings with Pawtucket last season, serving as both a spot starter and long reliever out of the bullpen.
“The cutter has really helped a lot,” Walden said. “I’ve thrown it for four or five years now consistently, and the last two years it’s really come around.”
Poyner made the jump after 16 appearances with Class-A Salem and 27 more with Double-A Portland last season. The left-hander allowed just 39 hits and struck out 84 in 60 1/3 innings, momentum he carried into a spring where he allowed just one earned run in 10 appearances. Poyner credited fellow Florida Gators’ alum Brian Johnson with helping to steer him through late February and early March.
“Everything from how to handle certain things in the clubhouse to certain pitches to hotel stuff, he’s always my go-to guy no matter what my question is,” Poyner said.
Around the bases
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Drew Pomeranz (flexor strain) and Eduardo Rodriguez (knee) both continue to progress in their rehabilitation. Pomeranz threw a side session on Wednesday while Rodriguez threw 60 to 70 pitches in an outing at Fort Myers on Thursday. Dustin Pedoria (left knee) also remains with the club while working his way back from offseason cartilage restoration surgery…The Rays sold out their 13th consecutive home opener to begin their 21st season as a franchise. Tampa suffered an 11-6 loss to Detroit in its debut on March 31, 1998, with Damion Easley, Luis Gonzalez and Joe Randa all pounded out three hits for the Tigers. Wade Boggs knocked in half of the Rays’ runs, including a two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth inning…A grease fire on the building’s third floor had fire trucks scrambling to the scene late Thursday morning. Sprinklers extinguished the contained blaze without incident.
bkoch@providencejournal.com
On Twitter: @BillKoch25