DENVER – In these desperate times, the Braves, badly needing a win, turned to Max Fried to halt a six-game losing streak. They needed a stopper. Who better than Fried?
The Braves ended their skid, beating the Rockies 11-8 Saturday night – but not because of Fried. He gave them five innings, but he did not turn in one of his classic masterpieces. On this night, his offense pulverized opposing pitching.
“He’s still fighting himself, I think,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “... Still not there yet. But it’s good that he went five innings. That’s big. Kind of regrouped and finished on a good note, I thought, so that’s a really good positive.”
Going forward, though, the Braves – suddenly battling to even make the postseason – need the elite Fried. The one who outclasses opponents with his deep repertoire. The one who paints the corners. The one who keeps them in any game.
Fried allowed five runs – four earned – on seven hits. He struck out nine batters and walked three. He served up a three-run homer to former teammate Sam Hilliard. This start came six days after Fried permitted five earned runs over 3 1/3 innings, with five walks, against the Marlins.
Fried didn’t completely implode. He kept the Braves in the game. And he said he felt better on Saturday at Coors Field than he did in his return from the injured list after dealing with left forearm neuritis.
But through two starts off the injured list, Fried seems a bit off. His command has been poor. On Saturday, he threw 97 pitches over five frames. Usually in total control, he’s looked beatable.
“Just not feeling my body in space,” Fried said. “The last handful of years, I feel like I’ve been really good at being able to make an adjustment pitch to pitch and feel it. Instead of it taking a batter or two, or an inning or two innings, I’ve been good at being able to make the adjustment pitch to pitch. Over the last couple, I haven’t been able to do that. Happy that was able to cut it down – instead of the whole outing, I was able to figure something out in the fourth and the fifth where it felt a little bit better. But still just gonna be working as hard as I can to be able to limit that.”
But he’s healthy?
“Yeah. Perfectly healthy,” Fried said. “Just out of sync, out of rhythm. Just trying to make good, quality pitches as often as possible.”
This is great news. Fried ended the 2022 season with an illness and last season with a blister.
How quick can Fried make the fix – the one he mentioned – that will allow him to adjust pitch to pitch?
This is the key question. And the answer is crucial because the Braves need Fried at his best to achieve their goals.
“Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely,” Snitker said. “And he’ll get there. He’s gonna readjust and get himself going and he’ll be fine. He came out after the fifth and wanted to keep going. I just didn’t see any sense in it when you’re at a pitch count like that after five. But he wanted to keep going. I’m the one that said no. But he said he felt great, so that’s a good thing.”
Added Matt Olson: “I don’t think anybody’s worried about that guy. The last two innings he threw were great. He wasn’t the sharpest to start, and I think we all know that. But I thought he settled in and found his tempo and made some good pitches those last two innings. The pitch count was a little high at that point, but it looked like he was kind of finding his groove there.”
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Fried became more important when Spencer Strider underwent season-ending elbow surgery. Now, in these times, the Braves are dealing with several questions as they attempt to gain momentum. They cannot afford for Fried to present one of those question marks.
Reynaldo López is on the injured list with right forearm inflammation. The Braves are trying to protect him and Chris Sale, who has also blown through his innings total from a year ago. Spencer Schwellenbach has exceeded expectations, but Atlanta is also attempting to manage his workload in his first major-league stint. Oh, and not to mention: The Braves are still searching for the potent offense that helped them win six straight division titles – a task made more difficult because of the injuries.
The Braves need to be able to count on Fried. If he’s pitching well and they make the postseason as a healthy rotation, they have as good a shot as anyone to win the World Series – with Fried and Sale leading that charge. But if Fried isn’t healthy or performing, then Atlanta’s road becomes much tougher.
You can even say that for these next two months. The Braves entered the season as a lock to make the postseason – at least on paper. Yet here they are, scratching and clawing to even make the dance.
“As a starting staff, every time that we take the ball, we expect to put us in a good chance to win,” Fried said. “We’ve prided ourselves on it this year and years past. It’s important. We set the tone and we set the rhythm of the game. So any time I take the ball, I want to go out there and put us in a good chance to win.”
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
The backdrop is this: Fried could be in his final two months wearing a Braves uniform. If Atlanta doesn’t re-sign him, he’ll become a free agent after the World Series concludes. He should have plenty of suitors on the open market. But before all of that, he has an opportunity to help lead the Braves to another World Series.
In his walk year, Fried has a 3.56 ERA. But that number might not accurately reflect his brilliance.
From April 23 through June 29, Fried posted a 1.92 ERA over 12 starts. He threw two complete games – one of them a shutout. He had two no-hit bids.
“You can check his baseball card,” Olson said “He’s done it for a while at a high level. I’ve said it a bunch: He knows how to get guys out a bunch of different ways. He’s not the same guy every time he goes out, which makes it tough as a hitter, to have to adjust on the fly for a guy like that.”
Just ask Jorge Soler, who had to face Fried three times in 2022 when he played for the Marlins. Soler’s three plate appearances versus Fried: A home run, a walk, a strikeout.
“He’s nasty,” Soler said through interpreter Franco García. “He’s got a lot of good pitches and I feel like he just doesn’t let you get comfortable when you’re in there.”
Fried hasn’t looked like himself since returning from the injured list. He’s still trying to find his rhythm.
Could it be due to not pitching for a couple weeks while the injury healed?
“I mean, it’s definitely a factor, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter,” Fried said. “We’re out here to win games and I’m activated and I’m taking the field, so if I take the ball, I’m expecting to be like myself and give us a chance to win.”
If he can consistently keep the Braves in games, then they’ll have a much better chance at achieving the goals they set in spring training.
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