Amid a swirl of controversy about both his conduct off the field and whether his health will permit him to stay on it, David Price spoke to reporters in the Fenway Park clubhouse for more than 10 minutes on Saturday. The remarks were his first both since he landed on the 10-day disabled list for left elbow inflammation and since revelations about his verbal confrontation with NESN analyst Dennis Eckersley created a firestorm around both the pitcher and his team.

Though Price missed most of the first two months of the season because of a forearm injury he encountered in early March, the lefthander downplayed concerns about the current state of his arm. Price, who is 5-3 with a 3.82 ERA in 11 starts, said that the severity of his current injury merits little comparison with what he experienced in Fort Myers.

“I feel good, honestly. It’s not the same that went on in spring training. It’s nowhere near the extent of what happened on March 2nd,’’ said Price. “If spring training was a 10 out of a 10, this is a 1. It’s not what it was in the spring. I’m confident that I’ll be OK . . . Just going on how my arm feels in everyday activity, whether it’s brushing my teeth or just using my arm in everything that I do. In spring training that was very limited in what I could do. Right now, it doesn’t limit me in everyday activity. It’s nowhere near what it was then.’’

As such, he expressed optimism that a quick return to the Red Sox rotation may prove possible. If he stays on schedule to start throwing a ball again on either Monday or Tuesday, the lefthander believes his return to the rotation may prove relatively rapid. (He is first eligible to come off the DL on Aug. 4.)

“I’ve probably averaged over 100 pitches since I came back,’’ said Price. “My arm is built up to this point. It wouldn’t be a long process once I start throwing.’’

While Price’s return to the mound has a chance to follow a fairly straightforward path, the fallout from his beef with Eckersley could prove more complicated to navigate. Price acknowledged that he could have found a better way to detail his grievances with Eckersley than to deride him in front of teammates on a recent charter flight, and said that he would speak directly with the Hall of Fame pitcher.

“We’ll definitely talk it out . . . When he’s around, we’ll speak face to face. I’m sure you all will hear what’s said. That’s the way it goes,’’ Price said of Eckersley, who is in Cooperstown this weekend for Hall of Fame ceremonies. “I could have handled it probably a different way, but ever since that’s happened, he’s been really good. He’s said a lot of positive stuff about everybody in this clubhouse. This is one band, one sound. We’ve got to have everybody on board. That’s that.’’

Even as Price suggested that he could have found a better way to express his objections to Eckersley’s candid and sometimes critical broadcasting style, the pitcher did not back away from his objections to the tone struck by the popular broadcaster.

“If Eck was around, he’d know who we are. He’s never in the clubhouse. Mr. [Jerry] Remy is always in here. Dave O’Brien is always around. Mr. [Mike] Timlin, on the road trip, always in the clubhouse. [Eckersley is] the one guy I’ve seen in my career that doesn’t ever show his face in the clubhouse. There’s a reason behind that,’’ said Price. “If you’re going to say what he says, you know, come around. Just show your face. And if guys have a problem with it, they’ll pull him aside. Be like, that ain’t how it’s done. This is not the first time this has happened here regarding Eck. It’s unfortunate that it happened and it did and we’re going to get through it.’’

Asked whether he believed his strategy for outlining his grievances against the media had been an effective one, Price expressed the view that his actions have been to the benefit of the clubhouse.

“I know this clubhouse is a tight-knit group of guys. Everything that’s happened has not spaced us out or done anything of that nature. If anything, we’ve had discussions about it, we’ve rallied around it,’’ said Price. “I’m standing up for my teammates. That’s it.’’

In his efforts to do so, Price said that he “absolutely’’ considered himself a leader within the Red Sox clubhouse, and was willing to court negative feedback if needed to demonstrate his support of his teammates.

“I talked to my dad this morning and he remembered whenever I got suspended in fifth grade for one day, for standing up for classmates,’’ said Price. “That’s who I am, that’s who I always have been, and that’s who I’ll continue to be.’’

Price expressed the view that his actions have brought his teammates closer together, encouraging a form of camaraderie that may help the team get past one of its most difficult on-field stretches of the season.

“This [controversy] isn’t going to hinder us in any way,’’ he said. “It hasn’t caused us to play the type of baseball we’ve played. We just haven’t played good baseball and that’s that.

“Like I said before, this is a very hard game and it’s not always going to go your way. Whenever you go through a stretch like this, everybody’s going to have to come together and we do and when we get through this, it makes us feel that much better at the end of the year.’’

Alex Speier can be reached at alex.speier@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter at @alexspeier.