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David Price has struggled to find the strike zone this year, which is why he is 2-3 with a 5.21 ERA.

By Steve Phillips, ESPN

The Tampa Bay Rays are heading into the All-Star break as contenders in the American League East, arguably the toughest division in the league. Although they've had success thus far, there have to be some real concerns as to whether they can sustain it in a three-team race with the Red Sox and Yankees.

One of the major reasons for their issues is that David Price has struggled so far. There seem to be so many rookie pitchers having successful starts to their major league careers that it's odd that Price, who had greater expectations placed on him than any of the rest, has struggled so much.

The major difference between Price and the rookies who are finding success so far this year is Price's inability to throw strikes. You cannot be a successful major league pitcher when you have 30 walks in 38 innings pitched. One of the biggest transitions from college baseball to professional baseball is that professional hitters, particularly major league hitters, don't chase balls out of the strike zone nearly as often as batters do in the college ranks. Pitchers coming into professional baseball have to learn to throw the ball over the plate to get batters out.

Price, who takes the mound Thursday against suddenly available Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay, has not been able to command his fastball enough to find success. If you are unable to throw your fastball for a strike, you can't be a successful major league pitcher. This kid is going to figure it out because he has the athletic ability and the competitiveness to do it. The question is, Will he be able to find his way into the strike zone without having to go back down to the minor leagues?

Price certainly doesn't deserve all the blame for the Rays' pitching problems. There have been struggles with just about everyone. Matt Garza has not won three consecutive starts in his career despite having some of the best stuff in baseball. Andy Sonnanstine has been knocked around pretty substantially this year. He already has given up 15 home runs in 81 2/3 innings, far ahead of the pace from a year ago, when he gave up 21 home runs in 193 1/3. Scott Kazmir just returned from the disabled list, and his stuff just hasn't looked the same and his ERA is 6.79.

The good news for the Rays is that their bullpen is among the best in the game. The Rays have the second-best ERA in the league because of extraordinary performances from their relief corps. Guys such as J.P. Howell, Grant Balfour, Randy Choate, Joe Nelson and Dan Wheeler have all been outstanding in the past month and a half. If Tampa's starting pitching doesn't begin to go deeper into games, that will start to take an irreparable toll on their bullpen. The bullpen can't be expected to continue to produce so many flawless innings if the Rays are going to win.

I never like to put expectations on essentially a fifth starter, or any rookie starting pitcher, even one who has great stuff. However, Rays fans have a vision that Price should become a No. 1 starter very quickly.

Players develop at different paces, and clearly it's going to take Price some time to find the more consistent release point to throw strikes. Nobody should give up on him; he's made of the right stuff. It's just going to take some time. If the Rays don't win this year, it won't be Price's fault. If they do win this year, rest assured that Price will clearly be a major reason why.

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TOUCH 'EM ALL

Who went deep? Keep track of all the home runs hit each day on "Baseball Tonight" and on the Baseball Tonight Clubhouse page.

For more, check out the Home Run Tracker page.

Home Run Tracker
NAME	HR	OPP	PITCHER	SITUATION
L. Scott, Bal	15	Bos	Beckett	Bot 2: 0-0, 0 Outs. None on.
M. Cuddyer, Min	12	KC	Meche	Top 2: 0-0, 0 Outs. None on.
T. Wigginton, Bal	6	Bos	Beckett	Bot 4: 1-0, 0 Outs. None on.
R. Barajas, Tor	8	TB	Shields	Bot 7: 0-2, 1 Outs. None on.
C. Ross, Fla	14	Was	Burnett	Bot 7: 3-2, 0 Outs. None on.

The complete list of Wednesday's homers

ON DECK: THURSDAY'S BEST MATCHUPS

Blue Jays at Rays, 12:08 p.m. ET

Roy Halladay takes on David Price in his first outing since Toronto general manager J.P. Ricciardi said the team would listen to offers for its ace. So this is Halladay's first audition for other clubs, right? Probably not, given that, well, Halladay already has proved he's an elite-level ace, one who is 10-2 this season, by the way.

Cardinals at Brewers, 2:05 p.m. ET

Joel Pineiro has had an odd season. He holds a 3.39 ERA and ranks seventh in the NL in WHIP, yet he leads the league in losses with nine.

Braves at Rockies, 8:40 p.m. ET

Tommy Hanson's much-anticipated arrival in the majors has not disappointed. The 22-year-old is 4-0 with a 2.25 ERA in six starts. Over his past four outings, he has allowed only one run in a stretch of 24 1/3 innings.

For the rest of Thursday's schedule, click here.