David Price was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 draft out of Vanderbilt, and burst onto the scene for the Rays during their 2008 World Series run. The lefthander is already a three-time All-Star, he owns a 55-30 record and he finished second to Felix Hernandez in the 2010 Cy Young Award voting.
But it almost feels like he's underrated these days, toiling before the small crowds at Tropicana Field, overshadowed in his own league by CC Sabathia, Justin Verlander and King Felix. Price takes the mound tonight at Target Field with a 2.63 ERA in five career appearances agains Twins, and he's held their hitters to a .200 batting average and a .556 OPS.
Price is 6-0 with a 1.82 ERA in his past nine starts, and he'll be pitching opposite Twins righthander Nick Blackburn, against whom opponents have hit .328 with a .923 OPS this year.
So, yes, you could say this pitching matchup is a mismatch. Or, as old friend Peter Schmuck used to say before these kinds of games when we were covering the Orioles together, "It's a reverse lock."
Update: Denard Span isn't starting, but it's just a standard day off, and yes, Manager Ron Gardenhire knew it'd be a good day to do it with Price starting.
RAYS (60-52) 1. Desmond Jennings, LF
2. B.J. Upton, CF
3. Matt Joyce, RF
4. Evan Longoria, DH
5. Ben Zobrist, SS
6. Carlos Pena, 1B
7. Jeff Keppinger, 3B
8. Ryan Roberts, 2B
9. Jose Molina, C
Starting pitcher: LH David Price (14-4, 2.49 ERA)
TWINS (49-63)
