In what was successfully a procedural transfer, left-hander Max Fried on Tuesday formally declined his qualifying supply. The Braves can nonetheless negotiate with Fried in free company and have expressed curiosity in doing so.
Though Fried was by no means more likely to take the one-year deal, the Braves provided it to him to make sure themselves Draft decide compensation ought to he signal elsewhere. The left-hander is broadly thought-about one of many 4 finest beginning pitchers on the open market, together with Corbin Burnes, Roki Sasaki and Blake Snell.
Fried, 30, is coming off his second All-Star season, throughout which he was 11-10 with a 3.25 ERA over 29 begins. He did miss time in July on account of left forearm neuritis and has struggled to remain on the mound all through his Braves tenure, touchdown on the injured listing 11 occasions over the previous seven seasons.
However Fried has been one of many prime pitchers in baseball when wholesome, rating behind solely Gerrit Cole with 71 wins since 2019. He’s additionally given the Braves some glorious postseason performances regardless of a checkered October monitor report general.
“We’d like to have him again, however 30 groups would like to have Max Fried, proper?” president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos mentioned final month. “We’ll see the place that goes. These guys that turn out to be nice gamers, rightfully so, they’ve earned the possibility [to be free agents]. They turn out to be actually wanted. However with Max, I’m an enormous fan.”
