The Los Angeles Dodgers’ blockbuster trade for Mookie Betts and David Price sent shockwaves across baseball last week. Coming off an MLB-best 106 wins last season, the club managed to bring aboard another former MVP and Cy Young Award winner in one fell swoop.
By acquiring Betts, the Dodgers accomplished their biggest goal of the offseason — adding elite talent to the roster. The club previously fell short of signing one of the top free agents and couldn’t meet the Cleveland Indians’ asking price for Francisco Lindor.
Price’s inclusion was also significant in that it allowed L.A. to bolster their starting pitching depth. The Dodgers lost Hyun-Jin Ryu and Rich Hill to free agency this winter and also traded away Kenta Maeda in a separate deal that netted pitching prospect Brusdar Graterol.
Price is one of the most talented pitchers of his generation, having earned five All-Star Game selections and the 2012 American League Cy Young Award. The left-hander, however, is coming off an injury-shortened season in which he logged his second-fewest starts (22) and innings pitched (107.1) since 2009.
Price underwent wrist surgery in September and was limited to just six appearances during the second half of the regular season. As he works his way back to full health, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts noted that he’ll be eased in for the bulk of Spring Training, via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
#Dodgers Dave Roberts said they will “slow play” David Price this spring. “Let him drive it” as far as workload
— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) February 14, 2020
At his introductory press conference with the Dodgers, Price revealed he is feeling considerably better. The 34-year-old is also open to pitching however frequently the club asks of him this season.
“I’ll do whatever these guys ask me to do,” Price said, before stopping himself. “Anything but catcher; that is one thing I will not do,” he added with a laugh.
The Dodgers routinely put their starting pitchers in the best position to succeed by managing their workloads over the course of the season, whether it’s in the form of an innings limit or an extra day off in between starts.
Price, entering his age-34 season and coming off a significant operation, would seemingly benefit from this strategy. Price threw his first official bullpen of Spring Training on Saturday.
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