For a pitcher who has supposedly had to “grind” through several of his first six starts for the Yankees, Max Fried has looked damn good on the mound.
The Yankees, particularly manager Aaron Boone, have used some variation of that word to describe a few of Fried’s outings thus far. The manager did so after the lefty’s no-hit bid on April 20 and again after Fried permitted just one run over six innings in Game 1 of Sunday’s doubleheader against the Blue Jays.
Added Boone: “He just kind of finds a way.”
Catcher Austin Wells also said Fried “grinded” when discussing the starter’s rebound from a first-inning run, which followed an Oswaldo Cabrera throwing error, in the Yanks’ 11-2 win over Toronto.
“I think there’s like an inning of every start for the most part that he gets through, and then he rolls after that,” Wells said. “Whether it’s at the beginning, middle or end, he gets through it. I think that’s why he’s had so much success and has great numbers to start the year, because he’s getting through those innings with minimal damage. I think that’s why we have him and why he’s here.”
By great numbers, Wells means Fried’s 1.43 ERA and 5-0 record, among other stats. The sensational start has made for a strong first impression after Fried inked an eight-year, $218 million deal over the winter.
That’s especially true with Gerrit Cole’s Tommy John procedure essentially anointing Fried the Yankees’ de facto ace.
“I already had high expectations,” Wells said. “I never really knew a ton about him, but getting to look at him coming into spring training and knowing what we were getting, I was super excited to get to work with him. Getting to call games for him is such a fun back and forth. It’s really cool.
“I think he’s exceeding all of our expectations, and he’s going to continue to do that.”
Fried noted that there is still “a long way to go” this season, but being welcomed by his new teammates has allowed the former Brave to settle in nicely.
His seven-pitch arsenal, meanwhile, has kept him from spiraling when he hasn’t been his sharpest.
“I think it’s both,” Boone said when asked if Fried’s knack for grinding through is a skill in and of itself or a product of his repertoire. “It’s just hard to really get a bead on him. That’s why he’s been able to generate so much weak contact over the years. But also, [he has] the confidence and fortitude to just kind of keep making pitches. So it’s pretty impressive when you do that.”
For Fried, overcoming lackluster days and moments comes down to “just being very honest with how you’re doing, how you’re feeling, what’s working, what’s not working,” he said. Whether the Yankees are winning big like they were on Sunday or they’re stuck in a tight game like the one-run win Fried started in Detroit on April 9, the 31-year-old’s mission is to keep his club “in striking distance no matter how I’m feeling.”
“You’re not going to feel your best every single time that you take the ball,” Fried said. “The most important thing for me is to be able to give us a chance to win.”
Fried has done that without fail through the early going of his Yankees career. In Wells’ opinion, that ability has been the most remarkable thing about him thus far.
“That’s why he’s been one of the best pitchers in the game since he’s been up,” the backstop said. “So it might be a skill. It might be a mindset. He’s definitely really good at it, but that’s definitely the most impressive part.”
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