Price's talent on display Friday

He pitched but 122/3 innings this spring, going 1-1 with a 5.68 ERA, allowing 22 hits. It did not seem to hint at anything, but David Price never stopped acting confident, acting ready.

Maybe he was. Maybe he is.

"Spring training is just spring training," Price said. "They keep stats just for the fans, I think. ... Spring training is gone."

So the Rays started his season Friday night against the Yankees, and Price did not stop until two outs in the eighth inning, his longest outing in the major leagues, departing with the bases loaded.

"Probably trying to do too much," Price said. "I knew I needed only one more out and I was trying to throw the perfect pitch."

It was still the kind of start that could spell trouble for the Yankees and Red Sox - the Rays' No. 4 starter (technically) getting a jump on the season.

"That had to be the best I've ever seen him," Rays manager Joe Maddon said.

"Yeah, that's one of my better ones here, I'd say," Price said. "But there's always room for improvement."

It was still Ace stuff. With a fastball topping out near 98 mph, with fastball command, with four other ever-improving pitches, Price allowed three runs, seven hits and struck out seven for the win as the Rays and their hit parade beat the Yankees 9-3 at the Trop in an unpathetic and unembarrassing 2 hours, 51 minutes. Eat your heart out, Country Joe West.

Somewhere in there, you remembered that the 24-year-old Price was probably the Rays' best pitcher in September. He went 3-0 across his last four starts, including wins while matched against CC Sabathia and Roy Halladay.

Price's biggest mistake came in the fourth inning, and Alex Rodriguez hit it 400 feet off the wall in center field for an RBI triple and scored on a throwing error by Dioner Navarro. That was no match for Rays as Carlos Pena and Willy Aybar both hit two-run homers off New York starter Javier Vazquez to go with Jason Bartlett's two-run double. And David Price kept throwing.

It's hard to believe we're just two years removed from Price's first professional outing, when he struck out three Yankees in spring training with fastballs topping out near 100 mph. Veterans gawked. Six months later, Price was closing out the American League pennant against Boston.

But this is his first season starting in the majors, and Friday marked just his 25th major-league start. The guy's aptitude is scary. The guy basically decided to learn a two-seam fastball on the fly during last season. Just decided and then did it.

"The curveball, pretty much at this time last year, was nonexistent," Maddon said. "The slider was inconsistent and the change-up was also a novice pitch. Within the last year, on the major-league level, he's developed probably two or three major-league pitches."

It was more than that Friday. It was more than that fastball. It was going out and shaking off that two-run fourth as if it was nothing, and it was. It was throwing just 66 pitches in the first six innings. Sometime after that, you realized Price is 2-0 in four career starts against the Yankees, with Yankees hitting just .153 against him. The lad does have a knack for the moment. As if we didn't know that from 2008.

Wade Davis, starter No. 5, goes for the Rays tonight against Sabathia. Price and Davis seemed like the wild cards as far as the upside of this Rays staff. James Shields will have some great nights. Matt Garza, if the other night is any indication, could be ready for takeoff. Niemann should manage nicely if he can dodge enough line drives. But what about Price and Wade Davis - all that talent, all that menacing stuff?

The first precinct has reported.

David Price is off and pitching, and 1-0.

"That's not enough for me," he said. "I'm thrilled that we won, but there's a lot of room for improvement. Lots."

Lots.