Boston Red Sox pitcher David Price made the most of Tuesday’s favorable matchup against the woeful Atlanta Braves, matching his career-high mark of 14 strikeouts as the Red Sox cruised to an 11-4 victory, per Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe.
Coming off an eight-run shelling in his previous outing, Boston’s prized offseason acquisition overcame a shaky start to Tuesday’s game, eventually holding Atlanta scoreless from the fifth through eighth innings after surrendering two runs through the first four frames.
Price held the Braves to two runs on six hits and two walks, ultimately exiting with a 6-2 lead after eight innings and 114 pitches, having struck out each of the last five batters he faced.
The Red Sox then added five runs in the top of the ninth to ensure the lefty improved to 3-0 in spite of his 5.76 ERA.
The latter mark might seem like a concern at first glance, but with 46 strikeouts through 29.2 innings in a Red Sox uniform, Price figures to get his ERA in line soon enough.
In addition to matching a career-best mark, Price’s 14 strikeouts were the most by any Red Sox pitcher since Jon Lester recorded 15 against the Oakland Athletics on May 3, 2014.
The franchise single-game record for strikeouts is the same as the all-time record, with Roger Clemens responsible for two of the three 20-strikeout performances in MLB history.
Clemens accomplished the feat while playing for Boston in 1986 and 1996, then was matched by Chicago Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood in 1998.
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