Preview: Rays (12-15) at Rockies (17-11)
Game: 2
Venue: Coors Field
Date: May 04, 2013 8:10 PM EDT
Starting for the first time since his feud with umpire Tom Hallion, David Price insists he's only focused on pitching the Tampa Bay Rays past the Colorado Rockies on Saturday night.
The left-hander won't have to worry about Hallion behind the plate this time and doesn't believe the crew working the series will have any hard feelings as Tampa Bay tries for its second win in a row at Coors Field.
"I don't think umpires hold grudges," Price said before a 7-4, 10-inning victory over the Rockies on Friday. "If something happened directly to that umpire, maybe. I don't know. I don't think so."
The AL Cy Young Award winner accused Hallion of directing a profanity toward him when the two exchanged words after the seventh inning during an 8-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Sunday. After the game, the plate umpire called Price a "liar."
Major League Baseball fined Hallion and Price as well as Tampa Bay pitchers Jeremy Hellickson and Matt Moore for their roles in the incident, and manager Joe Maddon has called the matter closed.
"It's about moving on," Maddon said. "It's about focusing on your team, your team doing well and not really worrying about the other stuff."
Price (1-2, 5.21 ERA) will try to build off his first victory, having recorded a season-best nine strikeouts and allowing three runs over seven innings against the White Sox.
In his only career start against the Rockies (17-12), Price yielded five runs and 10 hits over seven innings in a 5-3 loss at Coors Field on June 17, 2009. He laced a single in his first major league at-bat in that contest, but he's since gone 1 for 17 at the plate.
While Price now faces a team that leads the majors with a .284 batting average, it's uncertain whether he'll have to contend with two of Colorado's top hitters - Dexter Fowler and Troy Tulowitzki.
Fowler, batting .310 with a team-high eight homers, left Friday's game in the fourth inning after hurting his right hip flexor but hopes to play Saturday.
"I just landed weird. It's fine," he said. "It just tightened up on me. I knew it wasn't that serious."
Tulowitzki went 2 for 4 with two RBIs on Wednesday after missing two games with a shoulder injury, but the All-Star shortstop was out again Friday due to what he described as "heavy" legs.
Tulowitzki, intentionally walked as a pinch hitter in the eighth, is hitting .317 with six homers and a team-leading 24 RBIs.
"I'm thinking one game," manager Walt Weiss said. "Don't know for sure. Just one of those precautionary things. Just some soreness in his legs. Nothing major."
With Tulowitzki out of the lineup, Michael Cuddyer slid into the cleanup spot Friday and delivered a two-run homer. Cuddyer is batting .381 with four homers and 11 RBIs at home, but he's 1 for 12 with six strikeouts against Price.
Colorado counters with right-hander Jon Garland (2-2, 4.65), who looks to bounce back after allowing 10 runs and 18 hits over 12 innings in consecutive losses.
He's 5-2 with a 3.27 ERA in 11 career starts against the Rays (13-15), though he hasn't faced them since 2008.
Garland will try to cool off Evan Longoria, batting .400 with five extra-base hits and five RBIs during the Rays' 3-4 road swing. He had the go-ahead, RBI single in the 10th inning Friday.
The Rockies have lost 11 straight versus AL teams at Coors Field.
Game: 2
Venue: Coors Field
Date: May 04, 2013 8:10 PM EDT
Starting for the first time since his feud with umpire Tom Hallion, David Price insists he's only focused on pitching the Tampa Bay Rays past the Colorado Rockies on Saturday night.
The left-hander won't have to worry about Hallion behind the plate this time and doesn't believe the crew working the series will have any hard feelings as Tampa Bay tries for its second win in a row at Coors Field.
"I don't think umpires hold grudges," Price said before a 7-4, 10-inning victory over the Rockies on Friday. "If something happened directly to that umpire, maybe. I don't know. I don't think so."
The AL Cy Young Award winner accused Hallion of directing a profanity toward him when the two exchanged words after the seventh inning during an 8-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Sunday. After the game, the plate umpire called Price a "liar."
Major League Baseball fined Hallion and Price as well as Tampa Bay pitchers Jeremy Hellickson and Matt Moore for their roles in the incident, and manager Joe Maddon has called the matter closed.
"It's about moving on," Maddon said. "It's about focusing on your team, your team doing well and not really worrying about the other stuff."
Price (1-2, 5.21 ERA) will try to build off his first victory, having recorded a season-best nine strikeouts and allowing three runs over seven innings against the White Sox.
In his only career start against the Rockies (17-12), Price yielded five runs and 10 hits over seven innings in a 5-3 loss at Coors Field on June 17, 2009. He laced a single in his first major league at-bat in that contest, but he's since gone 1 for 17 at the plate.
While Price now faces a team that leads the majors with a .284 batting average, it's uncertain whether he'll have to contend with two of Colorado's top hitters - Dexter Fowler and Troy Tulowitzki.
Fowler, batting .310 with a team-high eight homers, left Friday's game in the fourth inning after hurting his right hip flexor but hopes to play Saturday.
"I just landed weird. It's fine," he said. "It just tightened up on me. I knew it wasn't that serious."
Tulowitzki went 2 for 4 with two RBIs on Wednesday after missing two games with a shoulder injury, but the All-Star shortstop was out again Friday due to what he described as "heavy" legs.
Tulowitzki, intentionally walked as a pinch hitter in the eighth, is hitting .317 with six homers and a team-leading 24 RBIs.
"I'm thinking one game," manager Walt Weiss said. "Don't know for sure. Just one of those precautionary things. Just some soreness in his legs. Nothing major."
With Tulowitzki out of the lineup, Michael Cuddyer slid into the cleanup spot Friday and delivered a two-run homer. Cuddyer is batting .381 with four homers and 11 RBIs at home, but he's 1 for 12 with six strikeouts against Price.
Colorado counters with right-hander Jon Garland (2-2, 4.65), who looks to bounce back after allowing 10 runs and 18 hits over 12 innings in consecutive losses.
He's 5-2 with a 3.27 ERA in 11 career starts against the Rays (13-15), though he hasn't faced them since 2008.
Garland will try to cool off Evan Longoria, batting .400 with five extra-base hits and five RBIs during the Rays' 3-4 road swing. He had the go-ahead, RBI single in the 10th inning Friday.
The Rockies have lost 11 straight versus AL teams at Coors Field.
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