David Price Not Satisfied: 'I Expect To Go Out And Dominate'
BOSTON (CBS) -- David Price drew the ire of many Red Sox fans after his playoff loss to the Indians in October, mainly because he sounded complacent with his rough outing. He described a pitch that the Indians' Lonnie Chisenhall hit out of the ballpark as a "good pitch."
Now, the Red Sox lefty is singing a bit of a different tune. Healthy and working his way back into form, Price hurled a solid if uninspiring six innings against the Phillies on Tuesday night at Fenway Park. He allowed three runs on just four hits. Two of the three runs came on a towering home run by the Phillies' Aaron Altherr that went completely out of Fenway Park.
Struggling at times with a lack of command, Price walked four and could not pitch beyond the sixth inning after throwing 103 pitches. Speaking to reporters after the game, Price acknowledged he has much higher expectations for himself the rest of the way.
"I expect to go out there and dominate, to be honest," said Price. "I don't expect anything less. It doesn't matter how I feel or what's going on or whatever the circumstances may be. I expect to dominate every fifth day. My mindset has not been altered, with the injury or anything else. I expect to go out and dominate no matter who I'm pitching against."
Price's next start is expected to be against the 44-22 Houston Astros, who are second in the American League in runs and first in team batting average. He has a long way to go before redeeming himself after last season's playoff disappointment, but it's an encouraging sign that he's unsatisfied with merely being decent.
But saying he expects to "dominate" and actually doing it are two different things. The Astros will be a significant test of whether Price is ready to do it.
