Max Fried of the New York Yankees has significantly improved in the latest pitching power rankings as the team starts the 2026 season without Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon. Fried's dominance, along with Cam Schlittler's performance, highlights the Yankees' strong rotation potential.
Yankees' Max Fried makes quite the jump in latest pitching power rankings originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The start of the 2026 season was an important one for Max Fried and the rest of the New York Yankees' staff. They had to start the new season without two big arms: Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon.
Cole has been recovering from Tommy John surgery, while Rodon is recovering from surgery to remove loose bodies and shave down a bone spur in his left elbow.
And without these two, the Yanks' staff stepped up in a big way. Max Fried has been dominant, and so has Cam Schlittler, and this rotation could be one of the best when Cole and Rodon return.
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Gerrit Cole is recovering from Tommy John surgery, while Carlos Rodon is recovering from surgery to remove loose bodies and shave down a bone spur in his left elbow.
Max Fried has been dominant in the 2026 season, contributing significantly to the Yankees' pitching staff.
The return of Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon could enhance the Yankees' rotation, potentially making it one of the best in the league.
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Fried was used as the ace when Cole and Rodon went down last year. He finished the regular season with a 19-5 record with a 2.86 ERA and is picking up right where he left off.
So far this season, Fried has compiled a 4-1 record with a 2.39 ERA over 52.2 innings. Two weeks ago, he was sitting on MLB.com's Pitching Power Rankings at No. 10. But now, Andrew Simon has bumped him up five spots, ranking him the fifth-best starting pitcher.
"Despite leading the Majors with 52 2/3 innings pitched, he's 'only' tied for 14th in strikeouts, but nobody has been better at limiting hits or homers. Opponents are batting .176 and slugging .231 against fried, consistently unable to square up either his sinker or cutter, even though neither jumps out in terms of velocity."
Fried has been excellent at limiting damage against him this season. He's been a tough pitcher to barrel up the baseball on, and he has been a big help for the Bronx Bombers, who sit in first place in the AL East going into Thursday's matchups.