Yankees left-handed starting pitcher Max Fried will face his former team, the Atlanta Braves, this Friday night at Yankee Stadium in the first game of a three-game set against Atlanta. First pitch is scheduled at 7:05 PM ET, when right-handed starter Tyler Mahle will get the start for Atlanta. The Yankees are coming off a tough series loss against the St Louis Cardinals on Wednesday.
Fried in 2026 has posted a 4-3 record with a 3.12 ERA in 75 innings pitched and 68 strikeouts with a 0.99 WHIP. Fried (age 32) returned from the injured list on July 22nd, in which he was magnificent, pitching five shutout innings, allowing just one hit and striking out seven batters. Fried landed on the injured list back in May after an MRI diagnosed him with a left elbow bone bruise. This timing was unfortunate for the Yankees, as Fried has been a staple, along with the eventual return of Gerrit Cole later that same month against Tampa Bay, during which the 35-year-old starter was recovering from Tommy John Surgery during the entire 2025 season.
Max Fried Signed Mega Deal With Yankees As Free Agent
Fried signed an eight-year $218 million contract with the Yankees as a free agent during the 2024-25 offseason. This was part of the Yankees’ “pivot” approach after losing Juan Soto in free agency to the New York Mets, and the Yankees also traded for Cubs outfielder Cody Bellinger that same offseason. Before joining the Yankees, Fried was the ace of the Braves’ starting rotation staff for several years. Fried pitched eight seasons for the Atlanta Braves.
He made his major league debut in 2017. Still, his best seasons with Atlanta were arguably from 2021-23, when he compiled a below-three ERA, won a World Series as a key contributor with the Braves in 2021, and was named an All-Star in 2022, where he posted an impressive 14-7 record with a 2.48 ERA and 170 strikeouts in 185.1 innings pitched that season.
Fried was also named to the All-Star team in 2024 with Atlanta , and last year made his first All-Star appearance as a Yankee in 2025. The Yankees pitching staff has been very good lately. It’s been the Yankees lineup that has struggled to really get going since injuries/underperformance.
The Yankees lineup has scored just six runs or more in two of their last ten games, and in those last ten games, six of them the Yankees lineup scored either two runs or less. It’s been tough sledding for a Yankees team that is still without Aaron Judge, has Cody Bellinger now on the injured list, and hasn’t had Giancarlo Stanton in the lineup since late April in Houston.
Yankees Lineup Needs To Pick Up The Slack
While the Yankees offense will have to start hitting better to turn their performance around of late, Max Fried will look to be the stopper that he’s largely been throughout his career and so far in his Yankee tenure. In two seasons as a Yankee, Fried has compiled a 2.93 ERA, winning 23 of the 45 games he’s pitched. The Yankees will be hoping tonight becomes win number 24, but it won’t be easy. Fried’s former team, the Atlanta Braves, are red hot, winning eight games in a row.
The Braves have the second-best record in baseball (70-45) and will likely win the NL East with an 8.5-game lead, with the Philadelphia Phillies trailing behind them. It should certainly be an interesting pitching matchup in the Bronx tonight. But for the Yankees lineup, they’ll have to pick up the slack if they want to change the trajectory in this series against a very good Braves team.
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