New York Yankees frontliner Max Fried is remaining pragmatic after the team lost ace Gerrit Cole for the year.
Yankees: Max Fried is only worried about playing his best
According to MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch, Fried had this to say about how he’ll approach leading the Yankees’ rotation without Cole at their forefront in 2025:
“At the end of the day, no one is Gerrit Cole, right?” Fried said. “I’ve got to take the ball every time that I take the ball. It doesn’t matter if he was on the mound or not. Realistically, it’s just about doing my job. It’s going out there and making sure that, when I take the ball, we have a really good chance to win that day.”
Fried also said:
“For me, I have to be Max Fried,” he said. “I can’t try to fill anyone else’s shoes.”
Yankees: Fried will bear heavy burden despite approach
Unlike in other sports, or even sluggers in the MLB, pitchers can only control what’s on their plate when on the mound. Fried will have to take his customary four to five days of rest between starts no matter how good or bad the Yankees are in 2025.
While that is true for the 31-year-old, he will have added pressure to play like a surefire ace for New York. Not only Cole, but reigning American League Rookie of the Year Luis Gil will also miss the first three months of the season due to a right lat strain.
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Fried has only seen 2.1 innings for the Yankees so far in Spring Training. As he greases his wheels in preparation for the upcoming campaign, New York will need him to perform like the ultra-efficient strikeouts artist he’s been for years on end.
If his 3.25 ERA and 166 Ks from last season carry over and then some, the former 2021 World Series champion will give the Yankees an elite frontliner to wage another Fall Classic run in 2025.