Red Sox veteran Price to pitch against Phillies rookie (Jun 13, 2017)
BOSTON -- David Price makes his first appearance at Fenway Park on Tuesday night since his verbal tirade aimed at a reporter last Wednesday at Yankee Stadium.
Price, whose obscenity-laced rant was part of his announcement that he will only talk after he pitches, was hammered by the Yankees a night after his odd clubhouse encounter with the reporter and others in the Red Sox media.
On Tuesday, Price (1-1, 5.29 ERA) faces the Philadelphia Phillies and rookie Ben Lively (1-1, 2.57 ERA) in the second half of the Boston's home portion of the four-game, home-and-home series.
"David Price is an intelligent individual, he's a very smart person, and it's not like he hasn't been in a position where he's not had media training," Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski told the Boston Herald. "He's done all those types of things.
"So for whatever reason got him to that point -- and you don't condone it -- but he lost his cool at a particular time. And it's apparent afterward, he talked to some people with that language that weren't even associated with what took place. But again, you don't condone that."
Red Sox manager John Farrell spoke with his pitcher when the team got home from New York.
Price, who missed the first two months of the season with a left elbow strain, pitched well in his first two starts back, especially in the second one, in which he allowed six runs on eight hits in five innings.
This will be his first start of the season at Fenway, where he was 9-3 with a 4.11 ERA last year and is 15-4 with a 3.26 ERA lifetime.
He is 1-1 with a 4.76 ERA in two starts against the Phillies.
The rebuilding Phillies, who have lost six in a row and blew leads of 4-0 and 5-4 to fall Monday night, are throwing a pitcher whose major league career consists of just two starts.
Lively has thrown quality starts in both appearances, recording two of his team's 13 efforts of more than six innings by going seven innings in both.
"He's a real battler," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said after the last start, against the Atlanta Braves (a 3-1 loss). "Threw a lot of strikes. Walked a couple guys. Not a lot of strikeouts, but he battles. He comes right after you."
Lively has walked five and struck out only three (none in his first start against the San Francisco Giants).
"I'm not going to change how I pitch," he said. "That's what got me here. I'm going to be the same guy that I've always been."
Prior to his call-up, the right-hander was 6-1 with a 2.40 ERA and 45 strikeouts and seven walks in 56 1/3 innings for Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
The current Phillies are hitting a combined .158 (9-for-67) with 22 strikeouts in 57 at-bats against Price. Daniel Nava is 2-for-20 (.100) and Howie Kendrick 6-for-30 (.200) against the left-hander. Michael Saunders, 1-for-5 (.200) lifetime against Price, doesn't figure to play Tuesday.
