Over his first seven starts with the Boston Red Sox (27-17), free agent splash David Price (6-1, 5.53 ERA) had been nearly laughable on the mound, allowing a surplus amount of earned runs while racking up one of the steepest ERAs in the MLB for starting pitchers.
David Price finally meeting expectations
Now, while his ERA is still tedious, Price enters Tuesday night's opener of a three-game set against the Colorado Rockies (21-22) at Fenway Park with the momentum on his side, having turned in two solid outings in a row to calm the worrying masses in Boston.
Price, who currently leads the American League with 70 strikeouts and a 11.39 K/nine innings average, began his surge on May 12 in a win over the Houston Astros in which he struck out 12 batters and allowed just a single run in 6.2 innings before following that up with another excellent performance against the Kansas City Royals on May 18 in which he garnered a win with 7.1 innings of five-hit, two-run ball.
His ERA has dropped from a harrowing 6.75, where it stood after a May 7 loss to the New York Yankees, and he has the chance to potentially catapult to the Red Sox, winners of three of their last four ballgames, to sole possession of first place in the AL East with a win over Colorado on Tuesday night.
Colorado brings mashing lineup to Fenway Park
Batting in the hitter-friendly ballpark of Coors Field, the Rockies enter the series second in the National League with a .273 team batting average, second with a slugging percentage of .450, third with a .780 OPS, third with 660 total bases, fourth in runs scored with 208, and fourth with 199 RBI.
Third baseman Nolan Arenado currently leads the National League with 14 home runs and is second with 34 RBI and a 2.3 WAR while rookie phenom Trevor Story has mashed 12 home runs and driven in 31 runs, accumulating a .924 OPS second on the squad only to Arenado's .979 mark.
First baseman Mark Reynolds is tenth in the NL in batting with a .323 average while leading the Rockies with a .384 on-base percentage, and second baseman DJ LeMahieu has impressed with a .303 average and a .361 OBP.
Jorge De La Rosa looks to get back on track against unstoppable Red Sox offense
However, Colorado's offense pales in comparison to what Rockies starting pitcher Jorge De La Rosa (1-3, 10.18 ERA) will be forced to deal with on Tuesday night.
De La Rosa scuffled mightily before hitting the disabled list with a groin injury nearly a month ago, garnering a strikingly high WHIP of 2.08 in his five appearances.
Now, returning to the rotation, the 12-year veteran will have a lot on his plate against the surging Red Sox, who lead the MLB in average (.296), on-base percentage (.359), slugging (.485), OPS (.844) runs scored (256), hits (464), doubles (114), total bases (761), and have hit a home run in 22 consecutive games.
Three of the four top batting averages in the American League belong to Boston batsmen, with five everyday hitters batting over .300 and seven hitting for an OPS greater than .800.
Most notable on this list is center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr., riding an MLB-best 27-game hitting streak in which he has batted .408. For the season, Bradley Jr. is second in the AL in OPS (1.035), second in batting average (.342), second with a .618 slugging percentage, and fourth with 33 RBI.
His dominance of opposing pitching has overshadowed the tremendous start that shortstop Xander Bogaerts has enjoyed at the plate. The All-Star hopeful has recorded more hits (45) over the span of Bradley Jr.'s streak than the outfielder himself, leading the AL in average (.346) and hits (63) while enjoying his own 16-game hitting streak.
Designated hitter David Ortiz has been supplying the power for the Red Sox lineup in his final season, leading the AL in RBI (37), doubles (19), slugging percentage (.684), and OPS (1.092) while batting .329, good for fourth in the AL.
Big Papi slaughtered the Cleveland Indians in a 5-2 win on Sunday afternoon, batting 4-for-4 with two doubles, a home run, and three RBI while falling a triple short of his first career cycle.
Travis Shaw to sit out Tuesday
One player Boston will be without on Tuesday, however, is third baseman Travis Shaw, who will be held out of the series opener with a minor left hand injury which has led to his 6-of-30 slump as of late.
Despite his recent struggles, Shaw is still putting together tremendous numbers at the plate, hitting .305 with a .374 OBP, a .905 OPS, six home runs, and 29 RBI.