When the Rays were eliminated from the playoffs, David Price knew his time in Tampa might be over.
The 28-year-old ace, who spoke with Tampa writers on a conference call Wednesday night, said he thinks he’ll be the latest star on the perennial contender to be traded due to salary considerations.
“If you go with what’s been done in the past, I guess you’re going to have to think you’re going to get traded,” said Price, who has seen former teammates James Shields and Carl Crawford leave amid the organization’s budget crunch.
“You’ve seen it happen a couple of times already. I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I know what’s happened in the past.”
Price, who won the 2012 Cy Young Award and was the runner-up in 2010, made $10.1 million this season and is eligible for arbitration heading into next season. Price could end up making $13 million-$18 million in 2014, and he said the team hasn’t talked to him about signing a long-term deal.
Price said he would love to remain in Tampa, but he’s been aware of this possibility for some time.
“It’s not disappointing or anything like that,” Price said. “This is a place I love to be. My teammates and everyone in the organization knows that. It’s part of baseball, and it’s something I’ve seen go on, it’s kind of something I somewhat prepared myself for.”
The Rays had the third-lowest payroll in the majors this season at under $58 million, while sporting the lowest average attendance with 18,645 fans per game.
Because of that, Rays manager Joe Maddon would be saddened — but not surprised — if Price were not in the clubhouse next season.
“It’s never an inviting thought to think David is not going to be with you. But we’re faced with a lot of this stuff on an annual basis,” manager Joe Maddon told The Tampa Tribune. “It’s part of who we are here. We understand that. We’re hoping that it will turn out that he’ll be able to be here, but I don’t know how that is all going to play out. Players like David Price, you always want to have on your side.”