A must-read article by Kevin Kernan of the NY Post, he speaks with Andrew Friedman, the Executive VP of Baseball Operations of the Tampa Bay Rays, who knows a thing or two about building from within and investing in the draft.
“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.’’
“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.”
Kernan also quotes 2007 number one draft pick David Price who adds:
“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.’
Fascinating read by one of the more insightful and thoughtful writers covering the New York Mets. Honestly, I never miss one of Kevin’s articles and I can’t say that about many other writers covering the Mets. Read the full article here to get the entire context of those quotes, which is well worth reading as the Mets try and do their own kind of rebuilding.
Pay attention Mr. DePodesta…
And with the eleventh pick of the 2013 First Year Player Draft, the New York Mets select….
