Max Fried Looks Like Himself Again, but Can Yankees Trust It Lasts?

The Yankees signed Max Fried last winter to stabilize their rotation, but this summer raised the question: was he slipping, or just slogging through a midseason rut?

Since the All-Star break, Fried’s numbers told a worrying story. He went just 2–2 with a 5.73 ERA across six starts, managing only two quality outings. His command faltered, and while the strikeouts were there — 35 in that stretch — the efficiency and reliability weren’t. For a club that’s built October expectations around his left arm, that looked like a red flag.

The last two starts, however, have felt different. Against Boston, he blanked the Red Sox over six innings with seven strikeouts. He followed that up by carrying a no-hitter into the sixth against Washington, finishing with one run over seven innings. In those 13 innings, his ERA was 0.50, and he looked every bit like the ace the Yankees thought they were getting when they handed him eight years and the responsibility of fronting the rotation while Gerrit Cole heals.

That contrast is what makes this moment pivotal. Is Fried truly back? Or are these just two good outings against lineups that didn’t punish his mistakes?

The Yankees need the answer to be the former. With Luis Gil done, Clarke Schmidt shelved, and Cole watching in street clothes, Fried is the one starter who can tilt a postseason series. The numbers over his career — three-time All-Star, sub-3.10 ERA across nine seasons, elite at limiting homers — suggest he has that gear. But October doesn’t wait for stats to normalize.

If the version of Fried who just dominated the Red Sox and Nationals is the one they get down the stretch, the Yankees’ October hopes look real. If not, the slump that haunted his summer could define their fall.