Will Max Fried pitch for the Braves today?
Max Fried returns from the injured list on Friday afternoon against the Chicago Cubs. The ace's last start came on May 5, but a strained forearm sent him to the injured list for the better part of three months.
"Just getting back out there and competing, being with those guys, it's one of my favorite places to be," Fried said.
Fried was the runner-up in NL Cy Young voting just last season. He's a year away from reaching free agency, and extension talks will surely be heated between his representatives and the Braves this offseason. But as Fried returns to the fold, winning is the only thing on his mind.
"I feel like I've been able to get a really good test of how my pitches are working in the zone against guys," Fried said. "Now, I'm just going to go out there and trust it at Wrigley. I'll definitely have some butterflies and jitters before I go out there."
In his four rehab starts, Fried built up his pitch count to a respectable mark. In the most recent of those, Fried through upwards of 70-80 pitches, so it's fair to expect Brian Snitker to have a quick hook in his first outing. Fried is surely on some form of a pitch count off of a long injured list stint, and the Braves need to be careful with him.
Still, Brian Snitker can't help but show his excitement about Fried's return.
"It's awesome," Snitker said. "I can't wait to get him out there."
Alex Anthopoulos catches some heat for Braves trade deadline
The starting pitching market was hot at this year's trade deadline, with the likes of Aaron Civale, Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer and more changing hands. While Atlanta reportedly did their due diligence on Verlander, who pitched for their division rival in New York, they refused to meet the Mets price tag.
Starting rotation was undoubtedly Atlanta's biggest weakness heading into Tuesday's deadline. However, with the return of Max Fried on Friday, it's almost as if the Braves landed a big fish after all. Fried is likely to be on a pitch limit to start, but when he's back at full strength, the Braves rotation should look much better.
- Max Fried
- Spencer Strider
- Charlie Morton
- Bryce Elder
- Michael Soroka/AJ Smith-Shawver/Jared Shuster/Yonny Chirinos/Dylan Dodd/Allan Winans
Yes, that No. 5 starter role is a bit of a mess right now. Rather than acquiring, say, a Jack Flaherty-type, Alex Anthopoulos instead went with the by-committee approach, trusting what he has in his system. It also helps that Kyle Wright is on the mend.
Wright, a 20-game winner just a year ago, has also been on the injured list for some time now. It's unclear if he'll be back in time for the postseason, but the expectation around the Braves is that Wright could make a rehab start or two in September. He's already in a throwing program of his own.
With reinforcements on the way, Anthopoulos didn't see fit to rid an already-thin farm system of more prospect capital. AA did address the bullpen to some extent, trading for Pierce Johnson and Brad Hand. Nicky Lopez should add some important middle-infield depth. Left field still leaves much to be desired.
Thankfully for Atlanta, there are still several veteran options available on the waiver wire, with more to come.
Braves Rumors: Could Darius Vines make his debut soon?
The Braves farm system isn't the strongest in MLB for a reason, as Alex Anthopoulos has stockpiled young major-league talent by being willing to trade away some top prospect capital. However, in 2023 Atlanta has seen the surprising emergence of several key cogs to their future, including A.J. Smith-Shawver.
Soon, another Atlanta pitcher could make his way to the big leagues in the form of Darius Vines. At 25 years old, Vines is one of the older prospects in the Braves system. He's ranked seventh overall via MLB Pipeline, and has an ERA under one in two brief starts with Triple-A Gwinnett so far this season.
Vines spent the majority of this minor-league season rehabbing from a shoulder injury, but assuming he's throwing well in the upper levels of the Braves system, he's certainly in play to receive a spot start or two as Atlanta's No. 5. By no means is Vines an explosive pitcher, as his fastball sits mid-90's at best. He's no Spencer Strider, but he's effective at pitching to his defensive alignment.
MLB Pipeline described Vines in a similar fashion this season:
"While Vines is never going to wow with electric stuff, his feel for pitching has enabled him to get outs at the upper levels of the system. His secondary stuff is better than his fastball, starting with a plus changeup, thrown around 81-82 mph with deception and depth. He'll throw it at any point and commands it well, getting swings-and-misses in and out of the zone. His low-80s slider isn't quite as exciting, but it's an average pitch that misses bats as well. He does have a slower curve he doesn't throw as much."
In many ways, Vines secondary stuff more than makes up for his slightly lower-than-average fastball velocity, which is what makes him an intriguing prospect.
