I am bullish on Price. I don't think the short rest is a huge problem, given the reduced pitch count in game two, and I really don't think warming up last night is an issue. I envision 6 IP or maybe even a few more outs, 3-4 runs, and a pile of strikeouts. We're up 3-1 with a gassed bullpen, a looming off day and a return to Fenway. Price and Cora both know he needs to go long more than he needs to keep runs off the board, so I think he will be around the plate, challenging hitters, possibly at the cost of a few long balls. The defense will be very important.
If the Sox can get Verlander off the mound on the early side, even if they don't score much against him, the game is winnable against a Houston bullpen that is every bit as beleaguered as ours. Obviously, if he pitches one of his better games, it will be tough for Boston.
But remember, Verlander had a Price-like first few postseasons. He was bad in 2006 (4 starts, high-5s ERA), bad in 2011 (4 starts, mid-5s ERA). It was only in the 2012 and 2013 postseasons that he really achieved a reputation as a big-game pitcher, throwing six good starts in seven tries (exception: the Pablo Sandoval game), and since then he's been pretty reliable — although the Orioles scuffed him up a bit in the 2014 ALDS. So he's been good, but not untouchable: and he's rarely faced offenses as good as Boston's, largely because there have rarely been offenses as good as Boston's.
