David Price Officially Opts Out of the 2020 Season
On Saturday, two more players officially announced that they will opt out of the 2020 regular season. The first notable name was Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher David Price. First with the news regarding Price, was Price himself on his personal Twitter account.
— David Price (@DAVIDprice24) July 4, 2020
2020 would have been his first season with the Dodgers. Price was a pivotal part of the complicated Mookie Betts trade in February with the Boston Red Sox. Heading into this season, the Dodgers viewed Price as a big part of their starting rotation.
In fact, many around the game believed that he could benefit from switching leagues. Last year with Boston, Price concluded the regular season with a 4.28 ERA over 22 starts. In that span, the southpaw recorded 51 earned runs, surrendered 15 home runs and 32 walks, and recorded 128 strikeouts.
Additionally, Price missed time last May for almost three weeks with left elbow tendinitis. Once August rolled around, he landed on the injured list again as he dealt with a left wrist TFCC cyst.
Felix Hernandez Elects to Opt Out
Aside from David Price, Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Felix Hernandez also elected to opt out of the 2020 season Saturday. First with this report was Robert Murray on Twitter.
Felix Hernandez has opted out of the 2020 season due to concerns over COVID-19, his agent Wilfredo Polidor of Octagon said.
— Robert Murray (@ByRobertMurray) July 5, 2020
Hernandez agreed to terms with Atlanta on a one-year, minor league deal in the offseason after spending his entire career with the Seattle Mariners.
In 2019, Hernandez had easily the worst season of his big league career. At the age of 33, the right-hander posted a 6.40 ERA over 71 2/3 innings of work. Over that span, Hernandez held opponents to a .291 Batting Average Against and had an overall strikeout percentage of 63.1%.
After signing with the Braves, many viewed it as potentially a new chapter for Hernandez. After all, he would be pitching with a different big league team for the very first time in his career. In addition, it looked like a deal where he wouldn’t have as much pressure given the depth of the Braves starting rotation. With the Mariners, Hernandez was the team’s ace for many seasons.
San Francisco Giants Player Considering Opting Out
While David Price and Felix Hernandez made their decisions official Saturday, San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey is at least considering opting out. Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle had the news.
Buster said he's leaving open the option of opting out based on the COVID developments around here and around the country. Said he doubts any player would give you a hard "I'm not going to opt out." #SFGIants
— Henry Schulman BLUE CHECK MARK (@hankschulman) July 4, 2020
Posey and his wife both reportedly had extensive conversations regarding a potential opt-out. After all, Posey has young children at home and doesn’t want to risk his family catching COVID-19 in anyway. With so much unknown regarding the future spread of the virus, it will be up to Posey to make the ultimate decision. Regardless, he will get the support of the San Francisco Giants organization with whatever decision he makes.
In the end, both David Price and Felix Hernandez likely won’t be the last two players to opt out of the 2020 season. As is the case with Buster Posey, other players and coaches are debating what they want to do. Moving forward, it’s important that all thirty teams remain flexible regarding the situation and give players the chance to make the best decision possible for them and their families.
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
