Max

Fried

A mere week after being reported as done, the Fried signing is now official. He’ll join Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón, Luis Gil and probably Clarke Schmidt in the Yankees rotation, though a deal involving Gil or Schmidt and opening up a spot for Marcus Stroman remains possible. Fried made 29 starts with a 3.25 ERA last season, but he did miss some time in July with forearm neuritis. In 2023, he was limited to 14 starts, mostly by a forearm strain. It’s a good sign that he passed his physical, but we do still worry some about his durability going forward.

It’s a massive deal for the Yankees, who have their co-ace to pair with Gerrit Cole for the foreseeable future. It’s the largest contract, which reportedly doesn’t include any deferred money and also contains a full no-trade clause, in baseball history for a left-handed pitcher as New York pivots after failing to retain generational superstar Juan Soto. The 30-year-old southpaw struck out 23 percent of the batters he faced last year with the Braves, finishing with a strong 3.25 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 166/57 K/BB ratio across 174 1/3 innings (29 starts). Simply put, he’s a ground-ball machine who excels at limiting hard contact. That formula works pretty much everywhere, which means that the move doesn’t change a ton for Fried from a fantasy perspective heading into next season as he remains a certifiable top 20-range option among starting pitchers.

Fried is believed to have the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees as his frontrunners. The 30-year-old southpaw will likely be leaving Atlanta after a solid eight-year run with a 3.07 career ERA and 73-36 career win-loss record. Fried would pitch near the top of the rotation for either team, and would present fantasy intrigue with any of those AL East clubs.

Anthopoulos noted that the club has already had discussions with free agent outfielders, starting pitchers and relief pitchers and they continue to engage on the trade front as well as they explore all available options. Retaining their own, left-hander Max Fried, seems like one move that the Braves would love to make though they’re expected to face stiff competition for his services on the open market.

Heyman referred to both calls as “positive” and mentioned that the Yankees are keeping tabs on the top-end starting pitchers as they await Juan Soto’s decision. Of the two pitchers, it seems that Fried is the higher priority target for the Yankees given that nine front office members were on a call with him that lasted over an hour. Heyman notes that “it’s unlikely the Yankees would look to add a big-ticket pitcher if they were to retain [Soto], but Fried could potentially be part of a Plan B if Soto were to sign” elsewhere.

MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand adds that the Red Sox were among several AL East teams, including the Yankees and Orioles, that were in on lefty Blake Snell before he agreed to a massive five-year, $182 million pact with the Dodgers. It shouldn’t come as a shock that Boston is looking to upgrade its lackluster starting rotation and Fried would certainly fit the bill as a certifiable front-of-the-rotation ace. With Snell representing the first real free agent domino falling, there could be a flurry of activity on the pitching market in the coming days.

Feinsand notes that Fried “may be the most sought-after arm” this offseason. That’s, in part, due to a career 3.07 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, and 863 strikeouts in 884 1/3 innings, but also because Fried is expected to command less on the open market than both Burnes and Snell. Given that the Red Sox need a left-handed starter and that Lucas Giolito and Max Fried were high school teammates, Feinsand suggests that Boston couldn’t be an intriguing destination for the 30-year-old. Other likely suitors are the Braves, Blue Jays, Dodgers, Giants, and Mets.

It’s now official. Nick Martinez was the lone recipient to accept a qualifying offer this offseason cycle, becoming just the 14th to do so since the system was implemented back in 2012. That leaves Juan Soto, Willy Adames, Pete Alonso, Alex Bregman, Corbin Burnes, Max Fried, Teoscar Hernández, Christian Walker, Sean Manaea, Anthony Santander, Luis Severino and Pivetta officially heading to free agency. Their respective teams will receive draft pick compensation if they wind up signing elsewhere. No real surprises here besides Pivetta, who ESPN’s Jeff Passan indicated last week has at least a “three-year deal” waiting for him on the open market.

The 30-year-old left-hander is one of the top starting pitchers available on the open market this season, so he’s going to attract plenty of interest. The Orioles, Red Sox and Yankees have all been linked to him already as well and the Braves have made it a priority to retain him as well. MLBTradeRumors.com expects Fried to land a contract in the range of $156 million over six years.

Eovaldi declined his $20 million option with the Rangers for 2025 and will be one of the more sought after hurlers on the market. Atlanta has needs in its rotation even before considering the potential loss of Max Fried, so this fit makes a lot of sense on paper. Eovaldi has had issues in terms of durability, but he’s been very effective whenever he’s been on the bump.