Boston Red Sox

Red Sox hope to be carried by Sale, Porcello and Price

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 2:15 p.m. ET

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) The Red Sox hope adding Chris Sale to a rotation that already included Rick Porcello and David Price will boost the team to its first World Series title since 2013.

''Boston's like the Golden State Warriors now in baseball,'' New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said during the offseason.

Porcello is the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner and Price won the 2012 honor.

''I don't pay attention to any of that stuff,'' Price said when asked about Cashman's comparison. ''I was on a team with two other current Cy Young winners and a guy that was going to win one in a couple years, a couple of years ago in Detroit. We didn't win a single playoff game.''

Price's Tigers won the AL Central in 2014 when he formed a tough top of the rotation with Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. But Detroit was swept by Baltimore in the Division Series.

''It doesn't matter how good a certain team is on paper, how good their bullpen is or how good their starters are or how many runs their offense is going to score,'' Price said. ''If you don't play the game the right way, it doesn't matter how good your team is. It's not going to end up where you want it to end up.''

Sale, a 27-year-old left-hander, was 70-47 in his last five seasons with the White Sox, including 17-10 last year. He was acquired in December for top infield prospect Yoan Moncada, and three players who spent last season at Class A: right-handers Michael Kopech and Victor Diaz, and outfielder Luis Alexander Basabe.

''I think we all agreed that this is a rare opportunity,'' Red Sox owner John Henry said on the first day of full-squad workouts.

Porcello, 28, was 22-4 with a 3.15 ERA last season. Price, 31, had a 17-9 record and a 3.99 ERA.

Sale wasn't overly excited by the comparison with Golden State.

''You respect it, but in the same time I try not to get caught up in stuff like that,'' he said. ''It's exciting. I think everybody in here should get excited. We have a very talented group of players in this clubhouse and there's lot of depth even beyond (pitching), but you can't put too much emphasis on the season stats or preseason mantras or whatever people say about you.''

Manager John Farrell is interested to see how the three push each other.

''That kind of unity and the natural kind of competition that will eventually develop within is nothing but a positive,'' he said.

Notes: 3B Pablo Sandoval, who played only 11 innings on the field last year before season-ending left shoulder surgery, said he's under no limitations. ''If it starts bothering me. they're going to put a limitation on it, but not yet,'' he said . Heavy rain wiped out much of Wednesday's workout. . The Red Sox are set to host Northeastern on Thursday.