Just as the New York Yankees got Carlos Rodon back in the starting rotation, they lost another left-handed starter to the injured list.
In a shocking announcement on Monday, the Yankees placed Max Fried on the 15-day IL with a bone bruise in his left elbow. The move is retroactive to August 14, one day after the 32-year-old made his last start against the Seattle Mariners. Notably, this is the same injury that sidelined Fried from May 14 to July 22.
The Yankees’ activation of Rodon (left elbow inflammation) for tomorrow’s series opener against the Baltimore Orioles will likely be the corresponding move to Fried’s IL placement. Fried was originally going to start on Wednesday in Baltimore, the middle game of the three-game set.
Despite missing over two months, Fried was enjoying another excellent season in the Bronx. In 15 starts, the left-hander tossed 86.1 innings with a 2.81 ERA, 2.56 FIP, 1.00 WHIP and 79 strikeouts against 27 walks. Remarkably, Fried had allowed just two home runs all season.
There is no dancing around how brutal of a loss this is for the Bronx Bombers. Even with the impending return of Rodon and stellar pitching from Cam Schlittler, Gerrit Cole and Ryan Weathers, the Yankees have been heavily reliant on their starting rotation this season.
Since Aaron Judge was sidelined on June 1 (officially placed on the IL the next day), New York’s lineup has been possibly the worst in MLB. In the 65 games during that span, they rank dead last in batting average (.217), on-base percentage (.284) and weighted on-base average (.292), 29th in wRC+ (86), 27th in runs scored (246, tied with the Cincinnati Reds) and 25th in slugging percentage (.382) despite hitting the ninth-most home runs (85).
Additionally, the inconsistent Will Warren will remain in the Yankees’ rotation as the fifth starter with Fried now out. Since June 8, the 27-year-old righty has a 5.87 ERA in 11 starts.
The Yankees still hold the first AL Wild Card spot with a 69-55 record, but given the state of the offense, losing Fried long-term again would be catastrophic towards their hopes of claiming the American League pennant, let alone winning the World Series for the first time since 2009. New York also trails the Tampa Bay Rays by 5.5 games for first place in the AL East as of Monday.
With Fried back on the shelf, the Yankees will not only need the starting rotation to continue its valiant effort, but for the lineup to finally snap out of its brutal funk as the team enters the stretch run.
