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Well, well, well, look what the rain brought in.
Max Fried will come off the injured list Wednesday to start the second game of a doubleheader against the Pirates at Yankee Stadium, getting activated earlier than planned as the Yankees pivoted after Tuesday’s washout.
The lefty will likely be on a pitch count around 60, but instead of throwing them for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Wednesday, which was originally the plan, the club pivoted and announced Fried as their Game 2 starter after Gerrit Cole starts the opener.
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Try it freeFried was initially expected to return next week in Chicago, but the rainout meant the Yankees would have to throw a bullpen game or bring up a spot starter at some point before he returned.
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So instead, they ditched the final rehab start and made Wednesday a significant day for the franchise — the first time Fried and Cole will be in the rotation at the same time, never mind throwing on the same day.
Fried, coming back from a left elbow bone bruise, last pitched for the Yankees on May 13, at which point he had a 3.21 ERA in 10 starts.
Cole returned from Tommy John surgery to make his season debut nine days later.
Since then, Carlos Rodón has returned to the IL with left elbow inflammation, but he has a chance to be back by early next month, at which point the Yankees could have the fully healthy rotation they have dreamed about — Cam Schlittler, Cole, Fried, Rodón and either Will Warren or Ryan Weathers.
Of course, that banks on everyone staying healthy until then, which is no guarantee. But the Yankees have withstood the rotation injuries so far this season to post a 3.63 ERA from their starters — the fifth-best mark in the majors entering Tuesday.
Yankees Merch Shop New York Post receives revenue from affiliate and advertising partnerships for sharing this content and when you make a purchase.It has been a strength of the team all season and has the potential to be even more so at full capacity, which could give the Yankees a lift at a time when they are trying to get back on track without Aaron Judge for the foreseeable future. Fried won’t be able to help a scuffling lineup, but his ability to consistently keep the Yankees in any game will be helpful in their attempt to overtake the Rays for the AL East lead, trailing by 1.5 games entering play Tuesday.
It will likely take Fried somewhere around five starts to get fully built up, but finishing that off in the majors should benefit the Yankees more than any spot starter or bullpen game could in his stead.
After signing an eight-year, $218 million contract, Fried was terrific last year in his first season in pinstripes, while Cole was on the shelf, posting a 2.86 ERA across 32 starts. He carried that success over into the start of this season, including pitching into the seventh inning or later in five of his 10 starts before getting hurt and leaving a start against the Orioles early.
The 32-year-old Fried described his injury as a hyperextending of his elbow and “the banging of the two bones back there.” He said he did not have any concerns about his elbow long term, but there was some question about whether this was something that might pop up again down the road even after he let it heal. Fried was hoping that making some mechanical adjustments would help to keep him in the clear moving forward.
