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Rays Option David Price, Four Others To Durham

By MARC LANCASTER | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 25, 2009

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PORT CHARLOTTE -- The Rays today optioned top prospect David Price and four other players to Triple-A Durham.

Justin Ruggiano, Reid Brignac, John Jaso and Elliot Johnson also were sent down.

While Price being sent out wasn't a surprise, the fact that Ruggiano got cut was unexpected. With B.J. Upton expected to open the year on the disabled list and Fernando Perez sidelined four to five months with a dislocated wrist, Ruggiano was believed to have a good chance at making the Opening Day roster as a backup outfielder.

His absence could open up a spot for veteran infielder Adam Kennedy, a non-roster invitee, if the Rays feel comfortable with Ben Zobrist and Pat Burrell backing up in the outfield for the week or so Upton is expected to miss.

Price said he "absolutely" believes Rays intended to send him down no matter how he pitched this spring and he wasn't surprised to be cut.

"Not a bit," he said. "I knew it was coming. It's part of it."

Nonetheless, Price was relatively curt in his remarks and didn't say much about the team's directives to him.

He said he plans to stay away from the park tomorrow perhaps playing some golf, before reporting to minor-league camp.

Rays executive vice president Andrew Friedman reiterated a talking point that had been in place since the end of last season, noting that development is the first priority when it comes to determining when Price becomes a full-time starter in the majors and concern over his 2009 workload isn't far behind. The Rays want Price to stay permanently whenever they install him in their rotation, and they want to make sure he's fully available to them as a starter if they reach the playoffs again.

Manager Joe Maddon has indicated he would prefer Price pitch around 175 innings this season, a number that would be difficult to maintain if Price was in the Rays' rotation all year and made the expected 30 or so starts that would entail. Friedman said the organization can better control Price's innings when he's in the minors – shortening his starts or giving him more days off between appearances – than it can in the majors.

"As we've demonstrated in the past, we're very dogmatic when it comes to our young pitchers and building them up, and we were in a different position in '06 and '07, when we could shut guys down near the end of seasons and not have it present a problem," Friedman said.

"But we're in a different situation right now. We have expectations and hopes of playing in October and we feel like we'll be a better team with David as a part of that and also continuing to work on the developmental things that we've laid out as well."

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