2016 AL East Rankings by Position: Starting Pitching
By Nate Wardle
3. Boston Red Sox – David Price, Clay Buchholz, Rick Porcello, Eduardo Rodriguez, Joe Kelly, Steven Wright, Henry Owens, Roenis Elias
How much of a difference does one pitcher make? A good bit for the Boston Red Sox. Without Price, the Red Sox would sit behind the Jays and probably even the Orioles. With Price, they are the third-best rotation in the AL East.
Price is arguably one of the top five pitchers in baseball. And it isn’t like he is a newcomer to the AL or the AL East.
Buchholz was quite good in 2015, before being hurt again and only starting 18 games, going 7-7. However, staying healthy is the key, something Buchholz hasn’t done in years.
Rodriguez was fantastic in 2015, but will the league figure him out?
Kelly was pretty good to finish the year, winding up 10-6. Can he carry that late-season success over into 2016? Will Porcello finally show his potential, or continue to struggle? Too many question marks to rank them any higher at this point. But, the depth is there, as the knuckleballer Wright is a capable fill-in, and Owens is probably about ready to be in the rotation.
A lot of question marks here.
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