Fried sweepstakes reportedly narrowed to 3 teams ... in the same division
Thomas Harrigan
@HarriganMLBThe race to sign ace pitcher Max Fried appears to be down to three teams, all of them residing in the American League East.
According to a report from The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal (subscription required), the Yankees, Red Sox and Blue Jays are the frontrunners to sign Fried, who is expected to make his decision by Thursday. Fried reportedly already has been offered a seven-year deal from one team, a source told MLB Network insider Jon Paul Morosi, and the Yankees are willing to make a seven-year offer as well, per Morosi.
MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch confirmed that the Yankees are “very interested” in Fried, adding that they view him as a potential No. 2 starter in a postseason rotation.
Attention has shifted to Fried and other top free agents following Juan Soto’s record-breaking 15-year, $765 million agreement with the Mets (per sources) on Sunday night. The Yankees, Red Sox and Blue Jays were also involved in the bidding for Soto, but they have pivoted to other options after missing out on the superstar outfielder.
Fried, who will turn 31 in January, has spent his entire career with the Braves, posting a 3.07 ERA with 863 strikeouts over 884 1/3 innings spanning parts of eight seasons. The left-hander has been especially effective since 2020, posting a 2.81 ERA -- the lowest in MLB among pitchers with at least 500 innings in that span. In second place? Fellow free agent Corbin Burnes (2.88).
Unsurprisingly, there's some overlap in the markets for those two ace pitchers, with Rosenthal reporting that Burnes is also generating interest from the three aforementioned AL East clubs. The Giants have been linked to Burnes, too, but they aren’t among the finalists for Fried. Meanwhile, the Yankees and Red Sox are reportedly among the clubs involved in trade talks for White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet, who is widely expected to be traded this offseason.
Fried and Burnes turned down qualifying offers from the Braves and Orioles, respectively, so they are tied to Draft compensation if they sign elsewhere.