“I’m almost the prototype No. 4 starter,” says Bannister, who has a 36-43 record in less than five major league seasons. “When this is important is trying to get a fringe guy to get the most out of his talent and ability. I’m not trying to reach new horizons. I’m trying to filter out what’s applicable to player development. That’s what’s important to me.”

NERD

“The definition of a pitcher is reducing the total number of times a batter hits the bottom half of the ball,” Bannister says. “The bat provides 2½ to 2¾ inches to make contact. That plane is the most important. A home run has to be hit on the bottom half. You either have pitches that sink — you use gravity — or have pitches they can’t hit at all.”

But everything that matters, from generating velocity to applying spin, is done while the pitcher has the ball.

“Once we let go, the physics are the same for everybody,” he says. “It’s like running. Most of it is God-given. You can only improve so much.”

Can we trade for him and make him our GM?