The Yankees Dominate Saturday Night, But Could Lose the War with Max Fried’s Pitching Performance
The New York Yankees emerged victorious in Saturday night’s game, but their celebration may be short-lived if Max Fried continues to dominate on the mound.
Fried, the starting pitcher for the Atlanta Braves, put on an impressive performance, striking out 10 batters and only allowing one run in seven innings. His dominant pitching kept the Yankees’ offense at bay and gave the Braves a chance to come back and win the game.
Despite the Yankees’ win, their future may be in jeopardy if Fried continues to pitch at this level. The Braves’ left-hander has been on a hot streak, with a 1.24 ERA in his last five starts. This kind of consistency and dominance on the mound could spell trouble for the Yankees in the long run.
The Yankees’ offense, which has been struggling as of late, was able to pull through and secure the win on Saturday night. However, if they want to maintain their spot at the top of the standings, they will need to find a way to crack Fried’s pitching code.
With the potential for a playoff matchup between these two teams, the Yankees should be concerned about facing Fried again. His performance on Saturday night showed that he has the ability to shut down even the strongest of lineups.
Only time will tell if the Yankees’ victory on Saturday night was just a small battle won, or if it Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Greg Joyce about the inside buzz on the Yankees. Try it free ST. LOUIS — The Yankees won the battle Saturday night, but they may well lose the war if Max Fried keeps pitching like this.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe left-hander turned in another rough start in an eight-game stretch of them, though his offense picked him up for what became a 12-8 win over the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.Fried got tagged for seven runs on eight hits across five-plus innings, continuing a concerning trend for the pitcher who often dominated like the Yankees ace across the first three months of the season.“I definitely have to change something and change it up quick,” Fried said.After throwing seven innings of one-run ball on June 25 in Cincinnati, Fried had a 1.92 ERA through 17 starts.Nolan Gorman runs down the line after hitting a two-run homer off Max Fried (background) during the sixth inning of the Yankees’ 12-8 win over the Cardinals on Aug. 16, 2025. Jeff Curry-Imagn ImagesIn eight starts since, he has been knocked around to the tune of a 6.80 ERA, looking little like the pitcher he was for most of the first half.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“Just haven’t been sharp,” said Fried, who battled a blister in July but insisted Saturday he is now fully healthy. “Haven’t had the good results. When you got to go out there and have good outings, I haven’t been able to do that. I’m working hard in between to try to make the best adjustments I can. They haven’t really been showing, but we’re here to win games. Really fortunate today that they put up 12 runs to be able to cover me. But I know going forward, I got to be way better.”CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATSAfter giving up a three-run shot to Masyn Winn in the second inning, Fried found a groove in which he retired 11 of 12 — something the Yankees hope he can build off of — though his outing still ended on a sour note as he gave up a two-run shot to Nolan Gorman in the sixth inning.Max Fried allowed seven runs in five-plus in the Yankees’ win over the Cardinals. Getty ImagesWalks have been an issue for Fried during this stretch, though he only issued one on Saturday while striking out six (including his 1,000th career strikeout).AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBut the Yankees need him to snap out of this funk altogether if they are going to get to where they want to go.“Even the elite-level pitchers go through things like this at times,” manager Aaron Boone said. “He’ll get there. He’ll get through it. There’s nothing wrong with him. Physically he’s in a good spot, stuff’s there. It’s just another level of execution. You’re kind of going through it a little bit, so you’re mentally fighting yourself. There’s no alarming, ‘Oh his stuff’s down,’ or, ‘What’s wrong with this?’ He’s too good to not get through it.?
