Max Fried’s first season with the Yankees has gone from a dream to a nightmare.
Through his first 17 starts, the left-hander had the second-best ERA in the majors, making the $218 million investment the Yankees made look like a steal.
But since then, Fried has put up a 6.80 ERA in nine outings, the fifth-worst among starters.
That downturn won’t matter if he turns his season around again as the Yankees enter the stretch run and then he pitches well in the postseason.
But the struggles have gone on long enough that Fried knows the time is now for him to get back into form.
And Friday’s start against the Red Sox would be a good time for it to happen.
“At this point, every game I pitch, I’m trying to get on track again so that I’m pitching to my standards and what I’m capable of,’’ Fried said before Thursday’s series opener versus Boston at the Stadium. “We’ve been playing really good baseball as a team. For me, it’s my time to start lifting my load and being able to do my part.”
Fried is also coming off an outing in St. Louis in which he gave up a season-high seven earned runs in a game the Yankees ended up winning thanks to the lineup putting up a dozen runs.
Still, Aaron Boone said there were positives to take from the start, pointing to the rhythm Fried had on the mound in the early going.
None of that matters, though, if the production doesn’t follow.
The Yankees won each of Fried’s first eight starts and 10 of the first 11. But they’ve dropped seven of his last 11 outings.
“At this point in my career, all that matters is if we win the game,” Fried said. “The individual stats are what they are. My job is to take the ball and help us win that day. That’s my only focus.”
Having one of the highest ERAs in the game for nearly two months doesn’t do any of that.
And still, the Yankees entered Thursday having won five in a row and leading the AL wild-card race.
“It’s definitely frustrating,’’ Fried said. “I want to be able to take the ball and put us in a good position to win every time and I haven’t been able to do that. I have to understand that I’ve got to do something different. We’re in the business of getting it done and I’ve just got to figure out how to get those results.”
Boone pointed to what he believed to be a lack of command over Fried’s last few starts and that he’s “probably fighting himself a little bit out there.”
And that’s resulted in poor performance.
“I think two of Max’s real strengths are his athleticism and vast arsenal,’’ Boone said. “He has a lot of really elite pitches and is able to do a lot of different things on the mound. That’s probably taken away a little bit [without command]. We have to make sure he can use his whole arsenal.”
The 31-year-old showed he was able to lead a staff when he stepped in as the ace after Gerrit Cole was lost for the season.
And for the Yankees to get to where they want to go, they’ll need that Fried again.
“Guys have done a great job of picking me up,” Fried said. “It’s about getting out there and having confidence to get the job done. It’s up to me to do it.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
