When the Los Angeles Dodgers completed a trade with the Boston Red Sox last January, they not only were counting on Mookie Betts to help end the franchise’s World Series drought, but David Price as well.
Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman openly detailed his longstanding admiration for Price during an introductory press conference, and voiced confidence the veteran left-hander would be a key member of the club’s starting rotation.
Price was with the team during Spring Training and impressed in his second Cactus League start, but wound up opting out due to concerns stemming from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. While the pandemic remains an ongoing issue, every indication is Price will play during the 2021 season.
That notion was further supported with a clip Price shared from a recent bullpen session. Posted to both Instagram and Twitter, he included the caption “Never felt better!!”
Never felt better!! pic.twitter.com/FgCnGTYV8C
— David Price (@DAVIDprice24) January 12, 2021
Price feeling healthy is certainly an encouraging sign for the Dodgers, but not necessarily a surprise. Prior to the 2020 season he already was expressing confidence a full recovery had been made from surgery to remove a cyst from his left wrist, which caused numbness and had an adverse impact on pitching.
“Health-wise, I feel really good. Getting some stuff done to my wrist, I can tell a big difference in day-to-day activities,” Price said last winter. “Using this offseason to get back to full health — this is the longest offseason I’ve had since I’ve been in the big leagues.
“For that to come at this time, to use that to get back healthy, everything feels really good right now.”
How Price fits in Dodgers rotation
With Price presumably set to be part of the fold, he figures to slot in s the Dodgers’ No. 3 starter behind Walker Buehler and Clayton Kershaw, who could be aligned in any order. The trio will be backed by some combination of Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May and Julio Urias.
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