PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- Max Fried hasn’t been told he will be Atlanta’s Opening Day starter. But the left-hander is certainly showing why the Braves might be just days away from officially giving him this honor.

Fried experienced little trouble as he cruised through six strong innings in an 11-1 win over the Rays on Sunday afternoon at Charlotte Sports Park. He will have time to make one more spring start before possibly taking the mound for the Braves’ April 1 season opener in Philadelphia.

“I’m just excited for the regular season,” Fried said. “I still haven’t been told anything. Whenever they tell me to pitch, I’ll be ready.”

Asked if he was ready to announce the Opening Day starter, Braves manager Brian Snitker slyly responded, “We haven’t even talked about it.”

So, while nothing is official, here is why it looks like Fried will be getting the same honor that was bestowed upon Mike Soroka last year.

Fried and Charlie Morton entered camp as the top candidates to be the Opening Day starter. Morton exited his last spring start in line to start the season opener on regular rest, but he will get an extra day of rest before pitching on the backfields on Tuesday.

Now, Fried and Morton are both lined up to make their first regular-season start with an extra day of rest.

Fried would do so on Opening Day and Morton would do so when the Braves play their second game in Philadelphia on April 3.

Making one of his final tuneups on Sunday, Fried faced one more than the minimum while limiting the Rays to one run and three hits over six innings. He recorded five strikeouts and didn’t issue a walk. The only damage he incurred came courtesy of Ryan Boldt’s two-out homer in the third.

“Any time you can get six up-and-downs and get stretched out, I’ll take it,” Fried said. “I want to be throwing the ball well going into the season.”

Rough spring for the MVP
Freddie Freeman’s body language is starting to express the frustration he has felt while going 3-for-23 with seven strikeouts thus far. He has already struck out more times than he did during Spring Training in 2017 (five K’s in 47 at-bats) and ‘18 (six K’s in 47 at-bats).

“He smoked a ball two days ago to left field,” Snitker said. “I’m not worried about those guys. They put together too many really good seasons as elite hitters.”

Lefty vs. lefty
Jake Lamb put the Braves on the board with the two-run single he tallied against Rays left-handed starter Ryan Yarbrough in the second inning. Lamb had entered the game hitless in five at-bats against left-handers and with an overall batting average of .130 (3-for-23) this spring.

Lamb, who signed a one-year, $1 million deal at the start of camp, is projected to be a power source off the bench. The 2017 All-Star has battled multiple injuries while struggling over the past three years. He has hit .207 (18-for-87) against left-handers since the start of ‘18.

Snitker plans to play Lamb at first base and give him at least three at-bats against the Twins on Monday.

Oppo boppo
One thing that immediately stood out when William Contreras arrived at Summer Camp last year was the opposite-field strength he’d seemingly gained while the game was shut down for a few months. The highly regarded catching prospect, ranked No. 7 in the Braves' system, showed some of this power again on Sunday with the solo homer he hit over the right-center-field wall against Hunter Strickland.

Contreras likely needs some more Minor League seasoning, but with the Triple-A season not starting until May, the Braves could choose to carry him as their backup catcher for at least a month and then possibly give the job to Alex Jackson.

“It’s a really good thing to see a player with skills. The more they play, the more they start figuring things out and getting better,” Snitker said.