Red Sox Place David Price On DL, Aren’t Currently Planning To Pursue Starters

3:30pm: President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski addressed the Boston media today and definitively stated that he’s not in the market for rotation help (Twitter link via the Boston Globe’s Alex Speier). “We’re not going to go out and make a big trade for a starting pitcher,” said Dombrowski, adding that Doug Fister is slated to step back into the Boston rotation.

Evan Drellich of CSN New England tweets that Dombrowski was confident that Price will return this season, though he was again non-specific about the nature of Price’s injury. Sean McAdam of the Boston Sports Journal adds that the injury was described as inflammation in Price’s elbow, not his forearm. His timeline for a return to the mound is uncertain.

11:18am: At present, Boston doesn’t intend to enter the market for starters, per Ken Rosenthal of MLB Network (via Twitter).

10:04am: Price will go on the DL, per MLB.com’s Jon Morosi (via Twitter).

9:13am: It has been an eventful season for Red Sox lefty David Price, who opened the year on the DL and has since become embroiled in a running spat with the Boston media. Now, with the trade deadline just days away, Price is again dealing with elbow issues, according to Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe (via Twitter).

The full severity of the problem isn’t yet apparent, but Price underwent an MRI yesterday, per ESPN.com’s Buster Olney (Twitter link). Notably, it’s the “same forearm issue” that the southpaw dealt with earlier this year, per Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald (via Twitter), and it’s likely that he’ll be scratched from his scheduled start this evening.

It’s too soon to guess at the implications of this news. But it’s obviously troubling to hear of new elbow questions for a Red Sox club that was hoping to count on Price as a key member of the staff down the stretch and into the postseason. And that’s all before considering the massive future obligations still owed under the contract that drew Price to Boston before the 2016 season.

If the Red Sox feel there’s enough concern to warrant a look at the trade market, they’ll find a long list of possible targets. But the few impact hurlers that may be available figure to draw high prices. Unless there’s a clear indication that Price could be looking at an extended absence, then, the club may prefer to simply go with what it has and hope for the best. It’s important to remember that the August revocable waiver period could also offer some possible solutions.