TAMPA — Neither Max Fried nor Matt Blake could say for sure if the former tipped his pitches in Game 2 of the ALDS last fall.
However, Blake, the Yankees’ pitching coach, told the Daily News that “we definitely had some concerns” as Fried surrendered eight hits, seven earned runs, a homer and two walks in Toronto on Oct. 5. The ace’s clunker put the Yankees in a 2-0 series hole; they eventually lost the ALDS in four games.
Fried made sure to credit the Blue Jays, who advanced all the way to the World Series, for their offensive outburst. But he also noted that he was ready to make some tweaks if he got another chance to pitch in the series — an opportunity that never came — despite never confirming if Toronto had a tell.
“They’re a really good team,” Fried told The News. “They were locked in. They had a really good team approach, and they were definitely swinging the bats well at a good time. So it’s just one of those things where my approach wasn’t working, and what I was trying to do was getting met with what they had planned. They had a really good series. If I had to do it again, I’d definitely change things up.
“I definitely knew that I was going to try to do something differently if I had an opportunity to throw in Game 5.”
Tipping, perfectly legal when done through natural means, has been a frequent topic of discussion when the Yankees and Blue Jays have played in recent years. Perhaps a new rule enforcing base coaches to stay in their boxes will limit the practice, but the Bombers, a bit obvious in their approach, benefitted from tipping on several occasions last season, including some instances against Toronto during the regular season and postseason.
Meanwhile, Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith reported over the offseason that the Jays picked up on at least one on-field tell from the Yankees during the ALDS, though it was not clear if Fried was the victim in question.
Regardless, Fried, who said he did not have any justified tipping concerns in his regular season starts against Toronto, is using his ALDS letdown as fuel as he prepares for his second season in pinstripes.
“I would say on a regular basis, probably a little bit,” Fried said of how long the start bothered him during a Thursday press conference. “You try to move on from it. You don’t want to ruin your everyday life from it. But every time that I get in the gym or I pick up a ball or anything that has to do with baseball, it’s definitely a motivating factor.”
While Fried’s year ended on a sour note, his debut season with the Yankees went well overall.
With Gerrit Cole sidelined by Tommy John surgery, the lefty took over as the Yanks’ No. 1 starter, earned an All-Star nod, went 19-5 with a 2.86 ERA, and logged a career-high 195.1 innings despite dealing with a mid-season blister. He also tossed 6.1 scoreless innings in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series against the Red Sox.
Alas, his campaign did not conclude the way he or the Yankees wanted it to.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about winning,” Fried said. “You just gotta make sure you go out there and win baseball games, and the end goal is to win a World Series. If you don’t do that, it’s not a good year.
“I felt like it was a good year, but at the end, I didn’t have the start that I needed to make. So that definitely left a bad taste in my mouth and motivated me throughout the offseason.”
