Left-handed pitcher Max Fried has plenty of suitors on the free-agent market, and he should garner even more attention once Juan Soto signs. This includes the franchise he’s spent the last eight years with, winning a World Series, three gold gloves and making two All-Star teams – the Atlanta Braves.
Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos always knew that bringing back Fried this winter was a longshot. The starting pitching market is top-heavy, and a talented southpaw like Fried is sure to out-shoot his coverage once CAA gets owners to the negotiating table. Anthopoulos will not fall for such maneuvers, as the Braves have Spencer Strider, Chris Sale, Reynaldo Lopez and more all under contract. Atlanta would have to replace Fried, sure, but they could likely do so for a cheaper price by acquiring a mid-level starter and simply moving their current crop up a day. It’s not rocket science.
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Still, Anthopoulos is not dumb. He knows Freddie Freeman and Dansby Swanson left Atlanta recently, and the fanbase is tired of watching homegrown talent perform for other teams, and in Freeman’s case win World Series MVP. That’s why he’ll try to sway Fried, even if the chances of a return are slim.
Those chances just took another hit in the last week, though, as the the New York Yankees are gaining momentum on Fried, per Michael Kay of YES.
“The Yankees had a 90 minute Zoom call with Max Fried yesterday, and it supposedly went very well . . . somebody who’s on the Fried side said that Max really really liked them and apparently they’re going to have another meeting as well,” Kay said on his radio show.
The Red Sox and Blue Jays were already known suitors for Fried, who has met with several teams leading up to the MLB Winter Meetings. He’s also a California native, which means the Angels and Dodgers are of interest.
Fried is a wanted man, and the Braves chances of retaining his services goes down just a tick every time another team expresses interest. Again, Atlanta can try to replace him, but that’ll be easier said than done. Fried had a 3.25 ERA, 1.164 WHIP and 3.5 WAR in 29 starts last season.
