David Price (baseball) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids David Price |
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Price with the Boston Red Sox in 2016
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| Pitcher | ||||||||||||||
| Born: August 26, 1985 Murfreesboro, Tennessee, U.S. |
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| debut | ||||||||||||||
| September 14, 2008, for the Tampa Bay Rays | ||||||||||||||
| Last appearance | ||||||||||||||
| September 30, 2022, for the Los Angeles Dodgers | ||||||||||||||
| MLB statistics | ||||||||||||||
| Win–loss record | 157–82 | |||||||||||||
| Earned run average | 3.32 | |||||||||||||
| Strikeouts | 2,076 | |||||||||||||
| Teams | ||||||||||||||
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| Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||
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Medals
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David Taylor Price (born August 26, 1985) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. A pitcher is a player who throws the baseball from the mound to the catcher. Price was chosen first overall in the 2007 Major League Baseball (MLB) draft. He made his MLB debut in September 2008 with the Tampa Bay Rays. He also played for the Detroit Tigers, Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Price started his career as a relief pitcher for the Rays during the 2008 playoffs. A relief pitcher comes into the game after the starting pitcher. He helped the Rays reach their first World Series by getting a save in Game 7 of the 2008 American League Championship Series (ALCS). A save means he finished the game and helped his team win.
Price became a full-time starting pitcher in 2009. A starting pitcher begins the game. In 2010, he was chosen to start the All-Star Game for the American League. He finished second in the voting for the 2010 Cy Young Award, which is given to the best pitcher. He won this award in 2012.
The Rays traded Price to the Tigers in 2014. In 2015, he was traded to the Blue Jays, who won their division. After that season, the Red Sox signed Price to a very large contract. He helped the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series against the Dodgers. The Red Sox traded him to the Dodgers after the 2019 season. He was part of the Los Angeles Dodgers team that won the 2020 World Series, even though he chose not to play that season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Price announced in December 2022 that he would not play in MLB during the 2023 season.
Contents
- Growing Up and High School Baseball
- College Baseball Career
- Professional Baseball Journey
- Personal Life
- Images for kids
- See also
Growing Up and High School Baseball
David Taylor Price was born in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He has two brothers and started playing baseball when he was very young. He was a big fan of the Atlanta Braves team.
Price was a star player on both the baseball and basketball teams at Blackman High School. In high school, he had a very low earned run average (ERA) of 0.43. ERA measures how many earned runs a pitcher gives up per nine innings. He also had 151 strikeouts. A strikeout is when a batter gets three strikes and is out. He won several awards in Rutherford County for his pitching and overall athletic skills.
College Baseball Career
Even though the Los Angeles Dodgers drafted Price in 2004 after high school, he decided not to sign with them. Instead, he chose to go to Vanderbilt University on an academic scholarship. He played for the baseball team for three seasons.
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In his first year in 2005, Price was named a Freshman All-American. He had a 2–4 record with a 2.86 ERA. He almost quit baseball because he was frustrated with how much he had to work, but his coach, Tim Corbin, convinced him to stay.
In 2006, Price set a school record with 155 strikeouts in one season. He was a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award, which goes to the best amateur baseball player in the U.S.
As a junior in 2007, he had an amazing 11–1 record with a 2.63 ERA. He led the country in strikeouts with 194. Price won several major national awards that year, including the Dick Howser Trophy and the Brooks Wallace Award. He was the first player to win all the top college baseball awards.
Playing for Team USA
In 2005, Price played for the United States National Team. He had a 2–0 record with a 1.26 ERA. In 2006, he helped the U.S. team win the gold medal at the World University Baseball Championship in Cuba. He had a 5–1 record with a very low 0.20 ERA in that tournament.
Professional Baseball Journey
Drafted by the Rays
Price was the very first player chosen in the 2007 Major League Baseball Draft. He signed his first professional contract on August 15, 2007. The contract was worth $11.25 million, including a $5.6 million signing bonus. This was one of the largest bonuses in draft history at the time.
Price started his professional career in the minor leagues. He played for the Vero Beach Devil Rays and the Montgomery Biscuits. He then moved up to the Durham Bulls in August 2008.
Time with the Tampa Bay Rays (2008–2014)
Price made his major league debut with the Tampa Bay Rays on September 14, 2008. He pitched as a relief pitcher. His first major league start was on September 22, 2008. He won his first postseason game before winning a regular-season game. He helped the Rays reach the World Series by getting a save in the 2008 ALCS.
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In 2009, Price got his first regular-season win on May 30. He finished the season with a 10–7 record.
A Great Season in 2010
In 2010, Price was the first American League pitcher to reach 10 wins that season. He was chosen as the starting pitcher for the 2010 All-Star Game. He finished the season with 19 wins and a 2.72 ERA. He came in second for the AL Cy Young Award.
Winning the Cy Young Award in 2012
In 2012, Price had an amazing season. He won 20 games and had the best ERA in the league at 2.54. He pitched a complete-game shutout on April 24, 2012. He was also chosen for the 2012 All-Star Game. Price became the first pitcher in Rays history to win 20 games in a season. He won the AL Cy Young Award after a very close vote.
In 2013, Price had 10 wins and a 3.33 ERA. He pitched a complete game in the 2013 American League Wild Card tie-breaker game, helping the Rays get into the playoffs.
In 2014, Price had five starts in a row where he struck out at least ten batters. This is a rare achievement in baseball history. He was named to his fourth All-Star team that year. Before being traded, he had an 11–8 record with the Rays.
Playing for the Detroit Tigers (2014–2015)
On July 31, 2014, Price was traded to the Detroit Tigers. In his first game with the Tigers, he pitched very well, striking out ten batters. He led all of Major League Baseball in innings pitched and strikeouts (271) in 2014.
In 2015, Price was the Tigers' opening day starting pitcher. He pitched almost nine shutout innings in their first game. He was named to his fifth All-Star Game in July 2015.
Short Time with the Toronto Blue Jays (2015)
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On July 30, 2015, Price was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays. He had a great debut for the Blue Jays, striking out 11 batters. On September 5, Price earned his 100th career win. He finished the 2015 season with an 18–5 record and a 2.45 ERA.
Years with the Boston Red Sox (2016–2019)
On December 4, 2015, Price signed a seven-year contract with the Boston Red Sox. This was a record contract for the team. He won his first game with the Red Sox on April 5, 2016. He finished his first season with a 17–9 record and 228 strikeouts.
2017 Season
Price started the 2017 season on the injured list because of an elbow injury. He returned to play on May 29. Later in the season, he had to go back on the injured list due to elbow problems. He returned in September and pitched as a reliever. In the 2017 American League Division Series, Price pitched well, but the Red Sox lost the series.
Winning the World Series in 2018
Price returned to the starting rotation in 2018. He pitched very well in his first two starts, getting a standing ovation from the fans. He finished the regular season with a 16–7 record and a 3.58 ERA.
In the postseason, Price had struggled in previous starts. However, in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series against the Houston Astros, he pitched six scoreless innings. This was his first win as a starter in the postseason, and it helped the Red Sox reach the World Series.
Price then started Game 2 of the 2018 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He pitched six strong innings and earned the win. He also pitched in relief in Game 3. Price started Game 5 of the World Series and helped the Red Sox win the championship! This was a huge moment for him and the team. After the season, he was named the AL Comeback Player of the Year.
2019 Season
Before the 2019 season, Price changed his uniform number to 10 as a tribute to his son. He started the season in the rotation but was placed on the injured list in May due to an elbow issue. He returned later that month and won six straight decisions. He was also briefly away from the team in August when his second child was born. Price finished the season with a 7–5 record.
Playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers (2021–2022)
On February 10, 2020, the Red Sox traded Price to the Los Angeles Dodgers. In May 2020, Price announced he would donate money to each of the Dodgers' minor league players to help them during the COVID-19 pandemic. On July 4, 2020, Price decided not to play during the shortened 2020 season due to the pandemic. Even though he didn't play, the Dodgers won the 2020 World Series, and the team gave Price a World Series ring. He later auctioned off his ring to raise money for charity.
In 2021, Price got his first regular season save on April 15. On May 27, he reached 2,000 career strikeouts. Price pitched in 39 games for the Dodgers in 2021, with 11 starts, and finished with a 5–2 record.
In 2022, Price pitched only as a relief pitcher. He played in 38 games. In early September, he was placed on the injured list. He returned to pitch in two more games that season. It was the first time in his career that he didn't start any games. On December 5, 2022, Price announced that he would not pitch in MLB during the 2023 season.
Personal Life
Price married Tiffany Smith in November 2016. They have two children, born in May 2017 and August 2019. They own homes in Florida, Tennessee, and Arizona.
Images for kids
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Price delivers a pitch for the Red Sox in 2016
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See also
In Spanish: David Price para niños
- Black Aces, African-American pitchers with a 20-win MLB season
- List of World Series starting pitchers
