RIGHT PRICE: The Rays, exhibited by David Price, have produced the model for building a young pitching staff, which the Mets should pay attention to, writes The Post’s Kevin Kernan. (Reuters)
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — The Rays have written the book on how to build a young pitching staff, and the author of that work, executive VP of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, is impressed with the way the Mets are going about their business.
“The Mets have a tremendous amount of young talent,’’ Friedman told The Post yesterday. “I think those guys have done a tremendous job of acquiring some high-end young players that they can grow with, and I think that [front office] is extremely good at supplementing around those guys and also having enough good young depth.
“The one thing about young players is that they have tremendous upside but they also have tremendous downside. There is far from certainty from these players. For us, it’s our only way of doing business. It’s not a choice. It’s a survival mechanism.’’
The Rays are far ahead of the pack on the acquisition of young arms and the development of that talent, and once again will challenge in the AL East. David Price is coming off a Cy Young season, and the Rays’ staff is packed with young arms even after trading James Shields for top prospect Wil Myers.
The Mets are building around young pitchers Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler and catcher Travis d’Arnaud, and acquired a power arm in Noah Syndergaard in the R.A. Dickey trade.
Here is how the Rays develop a plan for their young pitchers:
“We look at each guy independently,’’ Friedman said. “We factor in our trainer’s information, our pitching coach’s information, the repertoire, the number of pitchers per inning and for each guy we come up with an individualized plan with the idea of building them up to 200 innings consistently year after year.
“We have a three-year look, but it is really about that particular year and at the end of the year we rip it up and re-focus on another three years.’’
Ownership backs that plan, but life is getting more challenging each year.
“The large-revenue teams that are getting to the point of holding onto those young players and then also having the resources to go out and sign the premium free agents, it certainly improves their chances,’’ Friedman said.
There has been much talk about the Yankees cutting payroll to $189 million, which brings a smile to Friedman’s face.
“I do like all the narrative and the talking points about the 189,’’ Friedman said of his AL East rivals, “but I think they’ll be OK.’’
The Rays’ payroll is projected to be $62 million, a much different ballpark.
Price said the Rays’ success is built upon making the most of opportunities.
“The Rays were bad for a long time and then were able to capitalize on that and were able to make the right picks and bring the guys up through the system,’’ said the No. 1 pick of the 2007 draft.
“The Rays have such a unique style. When they sat me down the first day I came to spring training, they told me, ‘You are going to do, this, this and this over the next two years and then we’ll see you in the big leagues,’ and that’s what they did. After I came up in 2008 and pitched in the postseason in the bullpen they told me, ‘You are going back to Triple-A next year.’
“That was good because you don’t have that letdown. “They wanted to watch my innings in 2009 and at the time, you don’t appreciate that, you want to be in the big leagues. But now, since my arm is healthy and I feel so good, I do appreciate that. They wanted me to be healthy and to help this team win for a long time. It was a great blueprint.’’
The Mets desperately need their blueprint to be a success.