PawSox pitcher David Pauley has allowed just two earned runs in his two starts this season.

The Providence Journal / Ruben W. Perez

PAWTUCKET — Competitors one and all, when they are throwing well, they want to stay in the game, no matter what.

But they understand that when manager Ron Johnson strolls out to the mound, it’s not to ask how they’re feeling. He wants the ball. It’s called pitch count.

Yesterday afternoon, Pawtucket Red Sox starter David Pauley was protecting a 2-1 lead in the fifth inning. He was throwing hard, hitting the strike zone with a little more than half of his pitches. His curve and changeup were off at the start, but his fastball was steady.

Nevertheless, after retiring Casey Smith on a grounder to short to open the fifth, he was gone. Pitch count.

He had thrown 74, 43 for strikes, and his limit on this glorious spring afternoon was 75.

“I think there’s more of a concern for the quality of his outing rather than a few more hitters,” Johnson said after the PawSox had defeated the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, 5-2, in the conclusion of a season-opening 6-2 homestand.

“It’s early. It’s his second start. He threw 61 pitches last time and went through five [innings]. This time he went through 4 1/3 and 74. It’s a natural progression. Next time he’ll probably get a few more . . . There’s more concern with the quality of the outing, the quality of the stuff, than staying in a 2-1 game and trying to get a W,” the manager said.

The strategy comes from Boston, and Johnson agrees.

“I’m a believer. I believe in everything we do in this organization, and I believe it has been proven to be correct as far as the usage of these guys through our track record the last three or four years,” he said.

Johnson’s pitchers don’t argue, but sometimes they’d rather stay on the mound.

“The last thing you want to do is come out of a game, when you’re on the hook or when you’re on the line to get a win,” Pauley said in the clubhouse. “It’s a hard thing to give up, but it’s one of the things you have to deal with at the beginning of the season.”

Johnson said, “It’s one of those things where they don’t like it, but they understand it. Like I said, I’m a believer. We have some really intelligent people in our front office who have a really good feel and idea about the natural progressions of pitchers and development and what they should do. It’s been proven right over the last few years, so we stay with it.”

“It can be frustrating at times,” Pauley said, “but it’s all for the best.”

Johnson explained that the count will stay at 75 to 80 pitches for about three starts or through April and then increase to 90 to 95 before peaking at 110 to 115.

“That’s about all you’ll ever seen thrown down here, and that’s got to be almost nine innings. Our focus is to get guys quality innings and pitch efficiency. Our focus is to win, but our main focus is to get guys prepared so they’re in a position to help the Boston Red Sox,” he said.

Pauley, two months shy of 25, has looked good in his two starts this season.

He allowed two hits and one earned run in a 6-2 victory over Indianapolis last Saturday and five hits and one earned run yesterday.

“I was kind of struggling with my breaking ball earlier, both my changeup and my curve ball, but I was able to get some good fastballs over and get outs when I needed them. As the game went on I started to get a little better feel for my changeup and a little better feel for my curve ball. I felt pretty good. It was a good one to build on,” said Pauley.

Even if the building stopped in the fifth inning.

mszostak@projo.com