Pitchers of the Month: Fried, Montas
The Braves’ Max Fried and the Athletics’ Frankie Montas have been on a roll since the All-Star break and finished up the regular season with a strong September. On Monday, they were named the National League and the American League Pitchers of the Month, respectively.
Fried was nearly untouchable down the stretch as he allowed only one earned run over his final three starts, spanning 23 innings. That stretch included a Sept. 24 gem against the Padres which ended with Fried wrapping up his second shutout of the season.
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Through six September starts, Fried recorded a 1.54 ERA, a 0.73 WHIP and a .490 opponent OPS to help the Braves secure their fourth consecutive NL East title. He is the first Brave to be named Pitcher of the Month since Kris Medlen in September 2013.
The month was a fitting conclusion to a stellar second half for the 27-year-old. Fried entered the All-Star break with a 4.71 ERA and a .427 opponent slugging percentage. In 14 starts after the break, he pitched to a 1.74 ERA and limited batters to just .290 slugging.
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Montas experienced a similar turnaround in Oakland. He cut his ERA by more than half (4.41 to 2.17) and reduced his opponent OPS by more than 150 points after the break (.737 to .575).
He posted a 2.19 ERA through six starts in September. He went seven innings in three of those starts after going that deep into a game only four times in his first 27 outings this season. The highlight was his Sept. 19 start against the Angels, in which Montas permitted just one hit across seven shutout frames.
Montas is the second A’s pitcher to earn the monthly honor this season; Sean Manaea was the AL’s recipient for June.
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