In these parts, the sky isn’t the limit. It’s that expanse that is dangling perilously above our heads. David Price got his first dose of the famed fatalism that is part of the Boston baseball experience. His ability to handle it and respond with a dominating start against the Houston Astros on Thursday says much more about his long-term fit in the Fens than any radar gun reading.
Blocking out the New England negativity and sardonic commentary is crucial for any athlete who is going to succeed in the crucible of Boston sports. Human nature is to want to know what others think about you. But the more you can turn your mind into a monastery devoid of outside noise and non-believers, the better off you’ll be in Boston.
Those with a penchant for such cynicism observed that through seven starts Price, was pitching closer to Matt Young than Cy Young. Price entered the day tied with Wily Peralta of Milwaukee for the worst ERA among 100 qualified major league starters at 6.75.
With his mechanical tweaks inspired by pitch doctor Dustin Pedroia, Price silenced the doubters — the kids call them haters — and the bats of the Astros in an 11-1 victory at Fenway Park. Price went 6? innings, striking out 12 and allowing one run on six hits.
He turned up the velocity on his fastball and turned down the volume on the grumbling.
“Yeah, I don’t read what you guys write. I don’t listen to talk radio. I don’t watch MLB Network or ESPN. That stuff doesn’t affect me,’’ said Price. “It’s not part of what I do or what I’m about. I know the way that I’m capable of throwing the baseball. That’s what I expect to do.’’
With one of the aces of Red Sox past, Roger Clemens, in attendance, Price proved the ace title was not in abeyance.
This was a pivotal start for Price to quell the rising tide of insecurity about his signing. He had allowed six earned runs in each of his last two starts, and five or more earned runs in four of his first seven starts. That’s not what the Red Sox expected for Price’s record-setting $217 million price tag.
Jose Altuve ripped Price’s first pitch to left for a fast-sinking single. George Springer followed with a well-struck single up the middle on a 3-and-1 changeup. “Here we go again’’ went rolling through the minds of many of the 34,982 in attendance, like one of those television news scrolls.
But Price struck out the side, getting Carlos Correa swinging on a 93 mile-per-hour fastball, Tyler White looking and Marwin Gonzalez waving at a high heater. It was the first of three times on the evening he would strike out the side.
While Price was getting his groove back, the Red Sox bludgeoned another lefthanded American League Cy Young winner who had been struggling, Dallas Keuchel. The Sox touched Keuchel, who lost his fourth straight decision, for eight runs on 10 hits in six innings, continuing their offensive onslaught.
Xander Bogaerts blasted a two-run homer in the first. Houston scored a run in the second, when Pedroia’s error allowed Luis Valbuena to score. But with runners on the corner, Price got both Altuve and Springer looking to strike out the side.
Jackie Bradley Jr. extended his hitting streak to 18 games with an RBI single in the second and two more runs in the third gave Price a 5-1 lead. He didn’t squander the advantage this time.
In the fifth, after allowing a leadoff single to Altuve, Price fanned the side for 10 Ks.
The lithe lefty departed to a standing ovation with two outs in the seventh after ringing up Jake Marisnick on his 113th pitch.
“I’ve felt at home here. I haven’t thrown the baseball well. It’s time for that to change,’’ said Price.
It helped Price that the Astros are the closest thing MLB has to a wind farm. Houston came in leading the majors in strikeouts with 345 in 35 games.
They seemed like just the team for Price to test his newfound old mechanics against.
Keeping his hands higher into his leg kick, gave Price “much better finish to his pitches,’’ according to pitching coach Carl Willis.
“Just allowing myself to get into that power position, it is what I need to do. It’s what every pitcher needs to do,’’ said Price. “I got away from that, and I had success last year not doing that. That’s probably why I kind of stayed the same this year. To be able to acknowledge that with help from the coaching staff and Pedey, that was a good adjustment to be able to make.’’
I’m not a pitching coach and I didn’t stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night, so I can’t speak to Price’s mechanics.
It could be real. It could be a placebo effect.
The reality is that Price’s stuff wasn’t bad.
Entering Thursday, Price’s 11.54 strikeouts per nine innings led all American League starters.
According to Fangraphs, opponents were hitting .373 against Price in batting average on balls in play (BABIP), a number that hinted at some bad luck. His Fielding Independent Pitching number was 2.94, sitting 19th among major league starters.
“I don’t look at any of that stuff,’’ said Price. “Everything that has been touched has been a hit. That’s not going to happen all year long.’’
Does it really matter if it’s mechanics or peace of mind powering Price?
All that does is that Price has the right stuff — both in his arm and his mind — to make it here.
That’s why president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski signed him in the first place.
With nothing else to focus on because the Sox have been playing so well, Price’s assimilation became the one loose thread of doom to keep pulling at for the Red Sox’ unraveling.
Find another thread.
Christopher L. Gasper can be reached at cgasper@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @cgasper.
