The worst team in baseball made Max Fried work for almost every out.
The Yankees star pitcher was effective — allowing one run and one hit with seven strikeouts in a 10-3 win over the Rockies on Thursday — but inefficient in his third start back from the injured list, lasting just 3 ⅓ innings after throwing just 48 of his 80 pitches for strikes.
“They saw a lot of pitches, they were having some good at-bats and not chasing,” Fried said. “I felt like I was getting ahead, then throwing some non-competitive pitches. … It was just a weird outing where I was executing in certain counts, but I also had a lot of bad misses that caused a lot of deep counts. Going 80 pitches and not getting through four [innings] is not ideal. I didn’t want to put the bullpen in that position, but they did a great job picking me up.”
Since returning from a bone bruise in his left elbow for the second time this season, Fried has given up one run in each of his three outings (12 ⅔ total innings). Thursday’s lone run allowed came on a 431-foot home run by Colorado’s Kyle Karros that hit the second deck in left field.
Fried, who threw 63 pitches in his first start back and 72 in his previous outing, had moments when he looked like this season’s early Cy Young candidate, striking out four consecutive batters. He also displayed the rust of a starter who has thrown less than 38 innings since mid-July, walking the leadoff hitter in his final two innings.
Fried (4-4, 2.73 ERA) has gone 11 straight starts without picking up a win — most recently earning one April 27 — after going 19-5 last season, though he has allowed fewer than two runs in five consecutive outings.
“I’m feeling good, liking the progress so far, hitting my marks,” Fried said. “I felt like I could’ve definitely stayed in that game and kept going … I’m just gonna keep building.”
Soon, the Yankees will need much more from the owner of the largest contract ever given to a left-handed pitcher.
Fried has no doubt he will deliver.
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“We’re looking forward to having me being completely built up for the end of the season and the playoffs,” Fried said. “They’ve had a plan. As much as I would love to fast-forward the plan and just say, ‘Let’s throw it all out the window,’ they’ve got a lot of really smart people here who work really hard to try to make sure I’m gonna be healthy for when it matters most.”
