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BOSTON – Now that David Price has finally won a playoff game, the Boston Red Sox are hoping to win a second or even a third victory if necessary. Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora has officially named the left-handed veteran as the starter for Wednesday's second World Series game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Price entered the playoffs with a 0-8 record in nine career starts and his team lost all nine games. In his first start against the Yankees in the AL division, he lasted only five outs, while the Yankees hit home twice.
His first appearance against the Astros in the AL Championship Series was a little better as he started 4 ½ innings, but he still dropped four points and left with no decision – although his team won for the first time in one of his post-season starts.
Then comes his superb performance in the fifth match. After three days of rest, he ruled out the Astros with three hits in six innings, scoring nine career goals for a playoff game.
Price managed to unbalance the Astros using his higher rate of change – 43% of the time – than he had used in any game of his career – regular season or after the off season. The only change resulted in 12 swings-and-misses and Price won his first playoff victory as a starter when the Red Sox held out for the 4-1 win.
During the celebration at the Red Sox clubhouse, Price explained how much her pre-game routine was a little different.
"The night before throwing, I see myself throwing," he said. "Last night, I imagined myself doing this here and thinking of what I was going to say."
Price was relaxed and confident at Monday's press session in Fenway.
"You just have to keep doing everything you do," he says. "Chris Sale (star of match 1) just needs to be out there and be Chris Sale, and you can not be too trapped in the qualities of the opposing team."
The Dodgers got a better score by hitting the right-handers in the regular season, with a .796 OPS versus .733 against the left-handers, a reason why it made sense for Cora to go with Sale and Price in the first two games. The price was also much better at home in the regular season, with a 2.98 Fenway rear-of-the-road versus 4.31 on the road (although he allowed seven runs in six innings in both starts) in the playoffs).
Cora also refused to name her starters from games 3 and 4, a sign that Nathan Eovaldi and Rick Porcello will be possible options for the first two games. Porcello has played two playoff heats up to now, both in the eighth inning, while Eovaldi got four outs in the fifth game against the Astros.
The Red Sox will also make a decision Tuesday on the line-up of Steven Wright, who was removed from the ALDS roster with a knee injury and missed the ALCS. The knuckleballer had become a key part of the Red Sox setup and could also be a multiple-handed weapon coming out of the pen.
Heath Hembree had replaced Wright on the list of players, and he launched three scoreless innings in the playoffs. This could leave Brandon Workman out of the ordinary if Wright is activated.
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