The Detroit Tigers have been around since 1894. And with success, comes pitching. There have been some great ones throughout Tiger history – Mickey Lolich, Denny McLain, Jack Morris, Earl Wilson and Willie Hernandez – quickly come to mind. However, in the 121 year history of one of Major League Baseball’s most storied franchises, an African American has never started on opening day.
When the Tigers open the season at home on April 6 against the Minnesota Twins, David Price, will be on the mound, becoming the first African American in franchise history to start on opening day.
“It’s a tough decision when you have two guys like that,” manager Brad Ausmus said to KOTA-TV News of Rapid City, SD, when deciding between the two former Cy Young Award winners. “I think I could have gone either way. I could have gone Verlander-Price, but I decided to go Price-Verlander.”
It will end Justin Verlander’s streak of seven consecutive starts. Verlander won the American League Cy Young Award – and MVP – in 2011. Price captured the AL Cy Young one year later when Verlander finished as the runner-up.
“Looking at it from a baseball perspective, I felt this was the (right) decision and it wasn’t an easy decision. Justin Verlander has been an outstanding pitcher for a long time. He has done a lot for the Tigers and this organization. But, I have to make a decision based on baseball and what is best for the 2015 Tigers.”
Price, 29, spent his entire career with the Tampa Bay Rays before being traded to Detroit in July of 2014. Price is 86-51 with a 3.21 ERA over seven major league seasons. He went 15-12 with a 3.26 ERA and league-leading 271 strikeouts last year
“I’m extremely honored to take the ball on that day, because it’s a very special day in baseball,” Price said. “It caught me by surprise, to say the least. I definitely thought it’d be Ver out there.”
If healthy, Ausmus said Verlander would get the second start of the season and likely be followed by Anibal Sanchez, Alfredo Simon and Shane Green. This will be Price’s fourth Opening Day start – his first with the Tigers. He has a 3.54 ERA through 20 1/3 innings pitched on Opening Day.
“I’m just doing what I think is best for the 2015 Tigers,” Ausmus said. “They are both great pitchers. They will both get their starts.”
Zack Burgess is an award winning journalist. He is the Director/Owner of OFF WOODWARD MEDIA, LLC, where he works as a writer, editor and communications specialist. His work can be seen at zackburgess.com. Twitter: @zackburgess1
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