David Price Delivers Again When Rays Need Him Most

Walking briskly from the interview room to the Rays' clubhouse, Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon acknowledged that yes, there was a point when he considered removing rookie left hander David Price.  If the Phillies' first two hitters had reached in the ninth inning, Maddon said, he might have gone to right hander Grant Balfour before Jayson Werth, a notorious lefty masher, came to the plate.

Sure enough, Carlos Ruiz opened the inning with a double. But then Jimmy Rollins popped up—well, popped up after a pitch hit his jersey with no call from plate umpire Kerwin Danley.

That was it.

The rest of the game belonged to Price.

"Once Rollins made an out, it permitted me to relax," Maddon said after the Rays tied the Series at one game each, defeating the Phillies, 4-2.

"I didn't want to take (Price) out. I'm not saying I would have taken him out. But it was a consideration."

Maddon right now is one lucky manager, and I'm not talking about his decision making. I'm talking about the makeup of his bullpen.

There is Price, 23, who is the most electric young weapon in the postseason since Francisco Rodriguez made his debut for the Angels in 2002.

And there are the largely unknown veteran relievers whom Maddon can deploy at any time, ignoring the slavish, old-school adherence to traditional roles and the save rule.

Except for Dan Wheeler, none of the veterans were an established setup man or closer before joining the Rays. Most, in fact, were castoffs from other clubs.

Their meager histories, combined with the Rays' lack of previous success, liberates Maddon to run his bullpen however the heck he wants—unlike, say, a manager who must slot established, role-conscious pitchers.

"We understand how Joe works," Wheeler said. "If I see certain right handers coming up, it doesn't matter what inning it is, I have to be ready to go. If I'm not, I'm not helping the team out."

Added left hander Trever Miller, "There aren't any egos in the bullpen about when you get the ball. There are egos about what you do when you get the ball, pride in what you do."

The Rays' veteran closer, Troy Percival, helped instill that selfless approach when he was healthy. Wheeler actually closed when Percival was injured earlier this season. But on Thursday night, Maddon went to Wheeler in the sixth inning to help right hander James Shields escape a two-out, two-on jam.

Price replaced Wheeler in the seventh with two out and one on, issued a walk to Utley, then struck out Howard. Pinch-hitter Eric Bruntlett hit a two-out homer off Price in the eighth, but Maddon stuck with his rookie, who began last season at Vanderbilt and this one in A ball.

"I would have been shocked if he went with someone else," Miller said. "The kid wants the ball in that situation. He's mature beyond his years as a man and as a ballplayer."

"He's a perfectionist. He's not used to failing. You can see why. His stuff doesn't allow him to fail too much."

And so it was again Thursday night, even as Price navigated his eventful two-and-a-third innings.

With one out in the ninth, Werth reached on a wicked bouncer to third, a play that was harshly ruled an error on Evan Longoria. Ruiz scored, bringing Utley to the plate as the potential tying run.

Price struck him out.

Ryan Howard was next.

He grounded the ball to second and the game was over.

"Going through Utley and Howard a couple of times—that's not a joke right there," Wheeler said. "But there's such a calmness about him. I don't know if I'm surprised by anything he does anymore."

Price's take on facing Utley and Howard a second time?

"Just make good pitches," he said, noting that the Phillies' best hitters are human, lacking superpowers.

The kid isn't superman, either, but left-handed hitters are 0-for-7 with five strikeouts against him this postseason.

What exactly do you call that?

This article originally published on FOXSports.com.

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