David Price vs. Yankees

Given the lack of off days, not having Anibal Sanchez and a bullpen which is, at best, shaky, the last thing the Tigers needed was this type of start from David Price. His command was off, and there wasn't much life on his pitches, especially his breaking ball. Given Price's effectiveness normally, this is really stunning. It was like he was just slinging it up to the plate. There is only one thing that can nullify the disaster that was the Doug Fister trade. It is if David Price is the dominant pitcher he is capable of being. But this was terrible, and it couldn't happen at a worse time. Now some of the balls were seeing-eye grounders, but come on, nine straight hits, amazing. It wasn't like Price was missing bats. It was the second shortest start of Price's career. Price's ERA went up tonight from 3.00 to 3.22 with his outing.

My column. Heartbeat of high school is as strong as ever: http://www.theoaklandpress.com/sports/20140827/pat-caputo-heartbeat-of-high-school-football-strong-as-ever