Atlanta Braves starter Max Fried is not a stranger to winning.
He won 17 games in 2019 and 14 last year, with seven victories already on his record this season.
But he just scored another nice win in the last few hours, and this one didn’t come on the field.
“Max Fried won his arbitration case over the Braves. He will receive $6.85M rather than the $6.6M the Braves proposed,” MLB insider Jon Heyman tweeted.
Max Fried won his arbitration case over the Braves. He will receive $6.85M rather than the $6.6M the Braves proposed.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) June 22, 2022
It’s certainly not an ideal situation for the Braves to go to an arbitrator and point out weaknesses about Fried’s game in order to lower his salary, but in the end, it all worked out for the player and not for the team.
Fried Is Having Yet Another Stellar Season
Fried is having another excellent season with the reigning World Champs.
He is currently 7-2 with a 2.77 ERA in 14 starts and 87.2 innings.
While he would have a lot of competition if the season ended today, he should be considered a candidate to win the National League Cy Young award if he keeps this up.
And he has been consistently great: in the last seven starts, he has a solid 2.42 ERA in 44.2 innings.
He is throwing harder than ever (94.5 mph on average) and his breaking stuff looks as crisp as ever, too.
Behind him, the Braves are looking to repeat their World Series title run.
The team has been streaking, and Fried has been a big reason why.
All things considered, a $6.85 million salary does not do justice to all the things he brings to the table.
It’s what he gets this year, though, and he will get a better shot at a much larger payday eventually as one of the game’s best pitchers.
