New York Yankees ace Max Fried posted a 4.40 ERA in the Grapefruit League, with four walks and 12 strikeouts in 14.1 innings. That’s exactly why you shouldn’t fully trust spring training stats: no one in his or her right state of mind had any reason to doubt the stellar southpaw heading into the season. Taking the ball on Wednesday night versus the San Francisco Giants, Fried didn’t disappoint. The Yankees won comfortably 7-0, and their Opening Day starter was dealing all night. Fried kept his opponents off the scoreboard for 6.1 innings, in which he conceded just two hits and one walk. He struck out four and retired the last eight hitters he faced.
In the first couple of innings, you could see that Fried didn’t quite have his best curveball command, yet he cruised through those first two frames with no runs, just one hit, a walk, and four strikeouts. After that, he didn’t strike out any more hitters, but was still able to keep the Giants in check with an increased usage of sinkers and sweepers the second and third time through the order:
By the last couple of innings, the Giants started making more contact in the air, but Fried still finished with seven outs on the ground and three flyouts. In other words, he was always in control despite still not reaching his best velocity. The one time he was in some trouble was in the first inning, and he got out of the jam with a trademark groundball to second:
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Last season, Fried’s four-seam fastball averaged 95.8 mph, but the pitch was at 94.6 mph on Wednesday night, peaking at 96.4 mph. It’s certainly something to keep in mind, but it doesn’t sound like a major problem, and he should be able to reach peak velo in a few outings. In fact, the 94.6 mph average fastball velocity Fried showed last night was actually a small step forward because he checked in at 94 mph in his last outing.
Top velocity or no, it quickly became clear that it was going to be a long night for San Francisco anyway.
Fried totaled 86 pitches in the productive night, 53 of which were strikes. He ‘only’ got six swings and misses, though: one with the four-seamer, three with the cutter, one with the curveball, and one with the changeup.
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As the season goes on, Fried should be able to regain the feel for his excellent curve, a pitch that had a 42 percent whiff rate last year. It only earned a single whiff in three swings, but the fact that the offering only had a 15 percent CSW (two called strikes+whiffs in 13 pitches) was perhaps a bit more concerning.
Still, it’s nothing to be alarmed about, as Fried is good enough to bounce back eventually. This is a pitcher who posted a 2.86 ERA in 195.1 innings last season in his first year in pinstripes, winning 19 of his 32 starts. He’s 32, still in his prime, with no signs of slowing down. The Giants indeed helped Fried a bit on Wednesday night, as they consistently expanded the zone and produced empty swings and less-than-ideal contact every time they did it. The pitcher, however, was smart enough to keep testing their limits and getting good results. It should be another productive campaign for the talented left-hander, who was on pace to have a much better season last year if it weren’t for blister issues that popped up in July. This time around, we’ll hopefully see what a fully healthy season of Fried can provide.
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