Max Fried endured a difficult outing in what could potentially be his last start for the Braves. In the team’s 5-4 loss to the Padres in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series, Fried only managed to pitch two innings due to physical and emotional pain. The frustration began when he was hit by a liner from Fernando Tatis Jr. in the first inning, which ultimately led to San Diego’s five-run second inning.
Expressing his disappointment, Fried said, “It’s frustrating knowing that I was the one to take the ball on the last day and put us in the hole, to not be able to at least give us a shot for tomorrow.” As a free agent now, there is uncertainty surrounding Fried’s future with Atlanta. He has been with the organization since August 2017 and considers wearing their uniform as everything.
Unfortunately, this situation echoes what happened with Freddie Freeman and Dansby Swanson before they became free agents. Freeman had a fortunate ending by winning the World Series during his final game for Atlanta in 2021. On the other hand, Swanson experienced anguish as his last game for his hometown team resulted in a loss during the NL Division Series in 2022.
If this does turn out to be Fried’s final performance for the Braves, it would be an unfortunate ending. He started off by surrendering an infield single and then getting hit by Tatis’ liner at nearly 100 mph. Despite staying in the game and escaping bases-loaded threats early on, he struggled during that fateful second inning.
Fried explained that after being hit on his rear end, he felt tightness going into that second inning which affected his pitching accuracy against a strong Padres lineup. The result was three straight singles followed by consecutive extra-base hits from Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill.
Comparatively speaking, this start did not go well for Fried when compared to how he responded after injuring himself during Game 6 of last year’s World Series where he pitched six scoreless innings en route to victory. In fact, over his past eight postseason starts dating back to 2021 playoffs’ beginning until now, Fried has produced an ERA of 6.08 without completing five innings in any of those games.
All these factors contribute further frustration for Fried who also faced challenges due to illness and finger blister issues during previous playoff starts.
Braves catcher Travis d’Arnaud expressed hope that Fried will return next season as he believes Max has given everything he had for this organization.
