This was the highlight of the month in terms of fried food.
A pitcher who doesn’t give the opposing team an inch.
Who stood out when it really mattered?
The Yankees faced more frustration with a 1-0 loss against the Red Sox on Friday night, but the performance of the pitcher was not to blame. He kept the team competitive while Brayan Bello was on fire that night.
“I was mixing it up, using both sides of the plate,” Freed remarked after the Yankees’ tally dropped to 1-7 against the Red Sox for the season. “I think I was maybe relying too much on my fastball. It’s fine to throw various pitches in different counts and take some risks.”
The left-hander allowed only four singles over seven scoreless innings.
He faced Anthony of Phenomuroma three times, getting him out each time, even with runners on base.
Fried threw seven different pitches against the Red Sox, with a total limit of 26 innings.
He dialed back on his cutter, which was only thrown 14 times—more of a strategic choice.
“I wanted to effectively utilize both sides of the plate to vary the speed, and that’s something I think I executed well,” he explained. “A lot of the time, I found myself returning to the corners with a cutter. I wanted to try something new. It felt good, and I was pleased to keep my team in the game.”
The only downside to his outing was the high pitch count—99 after six innings—meaning he couldn’t go deeper.
This was partly due to three walks.
But for pitchers, those numbers tend to be concerning, especially when they’ve been struggling recently.
In his last three August starts, Freed had allowed 15 runs over 15 innings, giving him a 9.00 ERA. He wasn’t much better in July, with a 5.54 ERA.
Maybe this is the turning point as they head into September.
The Yankees are counting on him to improve.
“It seemed like everything was clicking for him tonight, and it was great to witness,” manager Aaron Boone commented. “His entire arsenal was effective; he was really in control all night.”
