![]() ![]() Thursday, Carlos Rodon, a 30-year-old left-handed starting pitcher, signed a six-year, $162 million contract with the New York Yankees. This team is printing money with the high attendance at The Battery. Will they be scared off by similar contracts and simply concede they cannot go that high? That would be inexcusable. It would be shocking if Anthopoulos has not talked to Fried about a contract extension, but that’s where the fear of the Braves being owned by a faceless corporation comes into play. There should be no reason to doubt Fried. This guy shows no sign of slowing down, and he’s determined to get better as he gets into his 30s and into his mid-30s, when some pitchers do break down or lose their effectiveness. ![]() He turns 29 next month, so he would be 31 years old in the first year of his new deal. Some will point to Fried’s age as being a potential issue. Buy out his two remaining arbitration years and give him more now to spread the money out. They can’t let him have another Cy Young-type season, as his price will go up higher. The Braves must sign Fried now, two years before he gets to free agency. ![]() ![]() You know they know that, and they probably have it on their board pinpointing Fried as an option in the 2024-25 offseason. He’s a Los Angeles-area native, and grew up a Dodgers fan. We do not want to be sitting here two years from now seeing the Dodgers sign Fried away. Fried is who you want on a big game in September against the Mets, or who you want on the mound when you can clinch a World Series championship.įried is who you don’t let get away. Fried is who you build a rotation around. They were good, but not great.įried is great. But whether it was because of injuries, ineffectiveness or trades, it didn’t happen. Plenty of pitching prospects have come and gone, and we all hoped the likes of Teheran, the late Tommy Hanson, Mike Minor, Kris Medlen, Horacio Ramirez, or Kyle Davies would become ace pitchers. He’s been in the top five of Cy Young voting twice, been an All-Star, won three Gold Gloves, and a Silver Slugger. In his career, Fried is now 54-25 with a 3.09 ERA in 125 games (108 starts). And when you find one, you certainly can’t let him go.įried is the best young pitcher the Braves have developed since Tom Glavine and John Smoltz, two Hall of Famers. That’s what you hope to find when building a pitching staff. It was his night, and Atlanta’s night to win the World Series. His fastball popped in the upper-90s, and he was determined he was not going to allow the Astros to score. His ankle was spiked and Fried admitted later “it didn’t feel good.” Instead of coming out, Fried stepped back on the mound and pitched like a man possessed. In the first inning against the Astros, he was stepped on by a baserunner going to first base. When Atlanta was a win away from winning the World Series in 2021, Fried was the one they all wanted on the mound. We’ve seen Fried develop into the one pitcher you want on the mound in a big game. Julio Teheran was a number one starter for several years with Atlanta, but he was not an ace. Remember, there is a difference between a number one starter and an ace. If not, there’s no way he would have ever been included.Īnd an ace is exactly what he’s become. The only reason he was available in the Justin Upton trade was he had just had Tommy John surgery. He was the seventh pick of the 2012 draft, the top high school pitcher selected. And the Braves hoped one day he would become an ace. When the Braves began the rebuild in 2014, Fried was one of the first acquisitions. Freeman, Swanson, and in two years Fried are stars who deserve top contracts, and as a pitcher, Fried may be in line to get the largest one. That’s great, and that proves the Braves do want to keep young players together for the long-term.īut they got bargains in all of those deals, contracts given a bit early at a very reasonable rate. Ronald Acuna, Jr., Ozzie Albies, Matt Olson, Austin Riley, Michael Harris, and Spencer Strider are all here to stay for years to come. Sure, we should be pleased General Manager Alex Anthopoulos has kept many of the core players on this team. And now, a few years later, Fried is one of the best pitchers in the National League.Īnd the Braves better never let him get away.įried is two years away from free agency, so why should we be worried? Well, probably because the Braves have allowed a star player in Freddie Freeman already walk away, and we are days from seeing it happen again when Dansby Swanson picks a new team in free agency. They stuck with him in the early going of his career, allowing him to become a top-of-the-rotation starting pitcher in time. It’s almost a John Smoltz-type story, as Fried first wore another uniform but is known for what he’s done in Atlanta after being included in a deal. Even though Max Fried was drafted by the Padres 10 years ago and then traded to Atlanta, he came up through the Braves organization. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |