GLENDALE, Arizona. – David Price watched the 2020 season as a spectator and was often impressed by the talent during the initial rotation of the Los Angeles Dodgers. When the off-season progressed and word began to spread that his team could ultimately add Trevor Bauer, the current National League Cy Young Prize winner, Price knew this would create a significant stalemate.
He reached out to the Dodgers’ president of baseball operations, Andrew Friedman, and delivered a message – if Bauer signs, he will take on any role.
“Whatever makes 2021 Dodgers better,” said Price, “I am all for it.”
When Price made his spring debut at Camelback Ranch on Monday, retiring all three Chicago White Sox hitters he faced in the fourth round, the plan remained mixed.
With Bauer and Price, a five-time All-Star who missed out on the shortened COVID-19 season, the Dodgers boast at least seven pitchers in good faith. At the top of the hierarchy are Clayton Kershaw and Walker Buehler. Somewhere near the end are Julio Urias, Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin – all young, all talented, all ready to join a major league rotation.
With Kershaw, Buehler, May, Urias and Gonsolin absorbing the vast majority of starts in 2020, the Dodgers led the NL in the ERA as they headed for the World Series championship. Adding Bauer and Price to the mix now gives them an important layer of depth for a year when the entire industry is concerned with how to account for the leap in innings that comes with increasing the regular season schedule from 60 to 162 games.
Dodgers can initially be creative with their initial releases, perhaps using two launchers per game as a way to limit workloads from the start. But his plans remain hazy.
For now, at least, all eight matches on the Dodgers’ depth table – a list that includes Jimmy Nelson, who was hired by the secondary league – will be traditionally stretched.
“They can all be a little bit different,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, of how he will use his holders in April, “but we all see them through the same lens.”
Price, 35, joined the Dodgers alongside Mookie Betts in February 2020, but announced that he would choose to leave the season five months later, citing a desire to stay close to his family during a tumultuous period. He will earn $ 64 million over the next two years, with the Boston Red Sox paying half his salary.
Prior to his most recent tour, Price had registered only 4 1/3 innings over an 18-month period, all of them in spring training.
He was admittedly anxious in the hours leading up to his debut in the spring.
“I could feel it last night, I could feel it yesterday before today,” said Price. “This morning, when I woke up, I was excited and impatient while on the pitch. It was good to be back there.”
Price started his fight lagging behind in the count, 2-0, for White Sox shorts Anderson Tim Anderson, then came back to retire him in a groundout and started to calm down. He went on to eliminate Luis Robert and ended the inning by inducing a harmless pop-up to Jose Abreu, the current MVP of the American League.
The stadium’s radar twice scored Price’s fastball at 94 mph, some ticks faster than his 2019 average.
“I expected 92,” said Price. “I saw the change at age 86, so I knew it couldn’t have been that bad. Ninety-four – that’s incredible. If I can go there and be 91 to 93, I can be very effective. If I can make it up to 94 and 95 , maybe even more. It’s a good sign. “