The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Ace Fried should be fine for playoffs
Tests on left-hander’s ankle alleviate fear he wouldn’t be available.
Braves ace Max Fried is expected to make his next start, which will be Game 1 of next week’s wildcard round postseason series, after results on his tweaked left ankle came back negative.
Fried left his Wednesday start against the Marlins after one inning. He sustained the injury while fielding a Starling Marte bunt, hurting his plant foot while throwing to first for the second out. Fried stayed in and allowed three consecutive hits, — including back-to-back homers, which were his first two allowed this season — before finishing the frame.
“All the tests were negative,” manager Brian Snitker said. “They’ll just treat him up the next few days. He’s moving around OK. He’s a little sore, I think. But all the tests were negative, and he’ll continue to get treatment and take it day to day.”
The Braves avoided a disaster scenario with their star lefthander. He’s expected to start Game 1 of a best-of-three wild-card round at Truist Park next week, which launches an expanded postseason that will transition to a Texas bubble for the remaining rounds.
“I think so,” Snitker said when asked if Fried would be ready for the start. “We’ll see going forward, but I think everybody feels that’s a realistic possibility.”
In an interview with MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM, general manager Alex Anthopoulos said Fried “will certainly be ready for Game 1.” He added that had Wednesday been a playoff game, Fried probably would’ve continued pitching.
“For the most part, he’s going to be fine,” Anthopoulos said. “The fact we had a week before
Game 1 of the playoffs, just give him some rest, rehabilitation, we’ll come up with some kind of bullpen (session) or (simulated) game for him before Game 1. He’ll be good to go.”
In an ideal world, Fried would’ve logged a heavier workload in his final regular-season start. He’s pitched just six innings in two outings since returning from the injured list with a left-side muscle spasm in his lumbar spine that forced him to miss one start.
Fried has pitched 11 innings this month, and he’ll have pitched one inning in 11 days leading to Game 1.
Other notes from Thursday:
■ Third baseman Austin Riley has rested the past two days with minor quadriceps discomfort. Adeiny Hechavarria has filled in at third.
“He’s had a little quad thing going on,” Snitker said. “We didn’t want to take a chance with him. We had an opportunity to get him treatment and give him a couple days. He came in today and told me he’s good to go if we needed him today, and we’ll get him back in there tomorrow.”
■ Hechavarria has played in only 23 games and collected 50 plate appearances entering Thursday. Snitker wanted to get him more at-bats leading into the postseason.
“Hech is amazing,” Snitker said. “He can sit for two weeks and go up and have at-bats like he did yesterday. It’s a credit to him, his daily preparation and how he stays ready. That guy never misses a batting practice. He never doesn’t take ground balls.
He plays all the positions. He’s a pro and takes his job seriously. When he gets an opportunity, he makes the best of it.”
■ The Cubs lost to the Pirates again Thursday, trimming the Braves’ magic number to secure the National
League’s No. 2 seed to one. The Braves have clinched the tiebreaker over the Cubs, which is intradivision record since the teams haven’t played head-to-head.
If the Braves are the No. 2 seed, they’ll host the No. 7 seed in the best-of-three round. The second seed won’t provide many benefits after that because the NL will shift to a neutral Texas location to complete the postseason.
One certainty: The Braves will be either the No. 2 or No. 3 seed, meaning should they advance, they wouldn’t face Los Angeles or San Diego – the two other NL teams with 34 or more wins – until the NLCS.
■ Right-hander Kyle Wright will make his final start of the regular season today. Wright’s endured an inconsistent season but he’s finishing strong. In his previous outing, he held the Mets to one hit over 6⅓ scoreless innings.
“I’ve had an up-and-down season but I’m starting to get back to who I want to be as a pitcher,” Wright said. The Vanderbilt product is crucial to the Braves’ postseason success. The rotation is counting on Fried, rookie Ian Anderson and Wright, whose recent breakthrough provides hope he can cover innings and give the potent offense a chance in October.