MLB Trade Deadline: David Price Set for an Upgrade in Detroit?

Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The Oakland A’s made some trade deadline moves to establish themselves as the favorites in at least the American League. Not taking this lying down, the Detroit Tigers have countered, at least according to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.

Jon Heyman of CBS Sports completed the rest of the details.

For now, though, let’s stick with the biggest name in the trade, the 2012 AL Cy Young Award winner.

Is David Price in for an upgrade? Well, to answer that question, we need to start by looking at his overall numbers this year.

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The numbers aren’t quite on par with what Jon Lester has done but as we went over with that trade, expecting a significant upgrade in regards to his ERA and WHIP would be incredibly optimistic.

Having said that, it’s absolutely worth looking at his career splits.

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So, while a huge upgrade may not be in order, a huge downgrade shouldn’t be expected either. Remember, a start in Detroit means facing the Miguel Cabrera and the Tigers offense. That’s no longer a factor.

Here’s where things get a little interesting. Unlike Lester, the exterior factors aren’t in Price’s favor, at least not overwhelmingly.

Detroit’s bullpen is a mess, and the numbers show it.

Their 4.48 bullpen ERA is good enough for 28th in all of baseball, which makes Tampa’s mark of 3.66 look a lot better than it is. So, if he leaves a game with a lead, I can’t imagine fantasy owners being that confident in that bullpen to hold the lead. Offensively is a different story, though.

The Tigers are averaging more than one-half run better per game than the Rays, so he should get significantly more run support. He’s on pace to win 17 games so I don’t know that we’ll see a gigantic uptick in that, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see Price win a little closer to 20. That doesn’t seem like a big deal, but even only a few wins could easily swing a fantasy championship.

It’s an upgrade for David Price and his fantasy owners. I don’t know that it’s a massive upgrade, but for now, it’s a trade that Price’s fantasy owners should be quite happy with.

Lastly, not fantasy related, but a potential A’s vs. Tigers series in the playoffs will be A LOT of fun to watch if you’re a baseball fan.