Max Fried’s free agency will be something all Braves fans watch this offseason.
Any club that needs a starting pitcher that loses out on Corbin Burnes will be calling Fried’s phone. The California native is expected to have plenty of suitors. Jon Heyman reported last week that four AL East clubs will be in the mix.
“The Yankees checked on the free-agent ace pitchers — Max Fried, Corbin Burnes and Blake Snell — but it remains uncertain whether they would do Soto and an ace pitcher, too,” Heyman wrote. “The Orioles, Red Sox and Blue Jays are all in on at least Fried. Boston is looking to upgrade its pitching and they don’t have a lefty, so Fried could make sense.”
The list is growing as Jeff Passan adds a pair of West Coast teams to the mix of those interested in Max Fried’s services — the Dodgers and Giants.
“San Francisco and Baltimore will be part of the mix, too. And don’t forget the Dodgers, who are targeting at least one high-end starter,” Passan writes. “Fried, 31 on Opening Day, looks likely to get the second-largest guarantee for a pitcher this winter after posting a major-league-best 2.81 ERA over the past five seasons.”
This isn’t exactly surprising as far as Los Angeles is concerned. Everyone knew they’d be interested in Max Fried. The Dodgers have a need for a frontline starter; Fried is from the state, and they’ve had plenty of success signing Braves free agents.
San Francisco isn’t that shocking either. The Giants have deep pockets, and their new president of baseball operations, Buster Posey, is looking to make a splash this offseason.
Nevertheless, this is the first corroborated report that the Dodgers and Giants are indeed interested in Max Fried.
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Photo: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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