Red Sox’ left-hander David Price is unlikely to undergo elbow surgery, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports. Price experienced elbow and forearm soreness in camp earlier this week and was rushed to Indianapolis for evaluations from Dr. James Andrews and Dr. Neal ElAttrache.
Any hint of elbow discomfort is troubling, particularly for a club’s front-end starter, but manager John Farrell confirmed that no surgery or platelet-rich plasma injections will be necessary for the time being. Instead, the lefty will keep to a routine of rest and anti-inflammatory medication for the next 7-10 days, after which the team will re-evaluate his condition and prepare to clear him for a return to the mound.
That doesn’t mean he’s out of the woods entirely, however. Farrell explained that there’s still no definite timetable for Price to rejoin the rotation, and the 31-year-old is not expected to have enough time to get fully stretched out before the regular season commences on April 3. Luckily for the Red Sox, they can afford to take things slow with their veteran left-hander, who Abraham predicts could be ready for the big leagues as soon as mid-April. If that’s the case, the team could roll out a rotation with Chris Sale and Rick Porcello at the helm, followed by right-hander Steven Wright and left-handers Drew Pomeranz and Eduardo Rodriguez.