David Price could pitch sooner than expected after an early exit over the weekend.
Price, who has been battling an illness, threw only 15 pitches before he was removed from the Red Sox's game Saturday. Because of the short outing, manager Alex Cora is thinking about realigning Boston's rotation so Price can face Cleveland rather than the first-place Yankees.
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Even though Price will get limited rest with a Tuesday or Wednesday start, Cora is hoping to avoid having to send Price to the mound later in the week. Price has always struggled at Yankee Stadium, recording an 0-6 record with a 9.79 ERA since signing with the Red Sox in 2016.
“We’ll see how he feels,” Cora said, via The Boston Herald.
Price has recently had trouble staying healthy. He was placed on the injured list earlier this month with an elbow issue. He was just activated ahead of a start May 20.
Saturday's game was just his second appearance since his return. But, leading up to the start, he was not feeling well.
According to the Boston Herald, Cora knew Price had flu-like symptoms since Tuesday. Price felt he was game ready, but was quickly pulled in the Red Sox's 4-3 loss to the Astros on Saturday.
“You trust the individual and he felt he was going to be able to compete,” Cora said. “But I got the feedback from the bullpen and then I saw it and I was like no, we’ll go somewhere else and try to get 27 outs somewhere else.”
Price is 2-2 with a 3.24 ERA this season with 47 strikeouts in 41 2/3 innings pitched.