Yankees’ loss to Cubs comes with Max Fried concern as bats go quiet to end winning streak

A bad day for Max Fried and the Yankees got worse when the left-hander had to be removed from Saturday’s 5-2 loss to the Cubs in The Bronx with a blister on his left index finger. 

For a pitcher that’s been more valuable this season to the Yankees in the wake of Gerrit Cole being lost to Tommy John surgery, it was an especially unwanted development as the club saw its five-game winning streak come to a halt. 

Fried and Aaron Boone said they should have a better idea in the next few days how long Fried will be out, though the upcoming All-Star break should benefit the left-hander. 

Still, for a pitcher that’s endured stints on the injured list due to blisters in four MLB seasons with Atlanta, including 2023 — and dealt with the issue as a minor leaguer — it’s cause for concern. 

“It’s too early to tell,” Fried said. “The good thing is we have the break to do as much as we can. [As for a] timeline, I don’t know. A lot of times you have to see how it starts healing.” 

Boone said Fried dealt with blister issues earlier this season, but Saturday was the first time it impacted him — and this one arrived suddenly, on his next-to-last pitch of the afternoon. 

Fried said he felt the blister on a fastball to Jon Berti with two outs in the third and threw one more pitch, a changeup, to get Berti to ground out to end the inning. 

He was replaced by Ian Hamilton to start the fourth. 

“He definitely had to come out,’’ Boone said of the injury. 

Fried was just one unfortunate aspect of a bad day in The Bronx for the Yankees, who were completely shut down by left-hander Matthew Boyd. 

Boyd was dominant for eight scoreless innings against a Yankee lineup that had scored 88 runs in its previous dozen games. 

The Yankees praised Boyd’s ability to attack the strike zone and change speeds, which kept them off-balance. 

They provided some drama in the ninth against Brad Keller, who gave up a two-run homer to Aaron Judge with one out, but Keller was pulled for Daniel Palencia, who got the last two outs. 

As for Fried, he had his worst start since signing with the Yankees on a seven-year, $218 million deal in the offseason. 

Named an All-Star, but replaced on the roster by teammate Carlos Rodón Friday due to what Boone called a multitude of factors, Fried gave up four runs — three earned — and needed 73 pitches to get through three innings. 

Even before the blister, Fried was off for a third consecutive outing after getting off to a phenomenal start in The Bronx. His three walks were a season high, despite lasting just three innings. 

Nico Hoerner led off the game with a booming triple to left-center and scored two batters later, then Fried was knocked around for three more runs in the third. 

“I was bad,’’ Fried said. “I just wasn’t good. I wasn’t able to execute pitches and get outs when I needed them.” 

He’s allowed 10 earned runs in 14 innings in those three outings and his ERA has jumped from 1.89 to 2.43 in five starts, but Fried said his form felt fine in those starts, as well as this last one. 

“Over the last couple, just some unfortunate timing on some home runs and runs,’’ Fried said. 

With the Yankees rotation already dealing with the losses of Cole and Clarke Schmidt due to Tommy John surgeries, as well as Luis Gil being out since the spring with a lat strain and Ryan Yarbrough — an injury replacement — on the IL with an oblique strain, an extended absence for Fried would be particularly damaging. 

“You just hope there’s nothing serious going on,’’ Judge said. “He’s been our ace all year. Our Cy Young guy. You get a little concerned when a guy like that comes out, but I don’t think it’s anything crazy.”