The Yankees made their biggest official move of the winter, announcing on Tuesday that they had signed the lefty. Fried Max in an eight-year contract. The CAA client will reportedly be guaranteed a staggering $218MM in the deal, which does not include any deferment or exit provisions but does include a full no-trade clause.
After losing the Juan Soto sweepstakes, the Yankees had a lot of money to spend all over the field for his services and they used those resources. MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported earlier tonight that the Yanks were willing to offer up seven years to Fried, but apparently were willing to go beyond that to get the undrafted southpaw in what would be the largest remaining pitcher contract in MLB history. , more than the rest of the team’s finalists in Fried’s services in Boston and Dallas. It’s not hard to see what they like about the southpaw. Going back to his first full season in 2019, Fried has a 3.07 ERA in 824 2/3 innings pitched. Only one baseball pitcher made it in both categories during that time: Gerrit Colenow he will share the front of the Yankees rotation.
It’s that record of dominance and resilience that made Fried an attractive target in the Bronx given the question marks surrounding the rest of the team’s deep but flawed mix. Carlos Rodón he has been dominant at times throughout his career, but has looked inconsistent in two seasons with the Yankees as he pitched to a 4.74 ERA and 4.77 FIP in 46 starts. Veteran is right Marcus Stroman he has a long track record of solid center rotation, but he’s entering his age-34 season and didn’t appear during the club’s run to the World Series this postseason. Nestor Cortes provides similar middle rotation stability but struggled just last year with only one season left in free agency. AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil and a little boy Clark Schmidt both turned in promising seasons in 2024 but checked with injury histories and minor hit records in the major leagues.
In contrast, Fried is the whole package. Since breaking out as the front-end of the rotation with Atlanta, Fried’s 2.81 ERA is the third-best in all of baseball among professional starters, tied only for Brandon Woodruff again Clayton Kershaw. While his 23.6% strikeout rate in that span doesn’t jump off the page, his 6.3% walk rate is above average and he’s produced bases at just a 54.2% clip. Alex Cobb, Logan Webbagain Framber Valdez they are the best. The southpaw-heavy approach should serve as an excellent complement to Cole’s power-hitting reputation and form a formidable combination at the top of the Yankees’ rotation for years to come.
That combination interested the Yankees enough that they were willing to move up to get their man. A free agent ranked #6 on MLBTR’s annual top MLB 50 list, Otohiswe defied the six-year, $156MM deal that had been projected for him and other speculation around the baseball world. Today’s agreement is really good news Corbin Burns and agent Scott Boras, where anyone hoping to land a top free agent this winter will now have to turn to both the Fried and Blake Snell outside the board. MassLive’s Chris Cotillo reports that the Red Sox have already begun preparing Burnes this afternoon. The Blue Jays, another Fried suitor, have also expressed interest in Burnes. Burnes arrived as MLBTR’s #2 free agent in the winter behind only Soto and was projected to receive a seven-year, $200MM contract at the start of the offseason but it wouldn’t be surprising to see a price increase in his camp due to the Fried deal.
Going back to the Yankees, their projected salary for 2025 is now $257MM (per RosterResource). That’s still $46MM less than last year’s total. Meanwhile, their $265MM luxury tax is above the original CBT limits; last season it stayed above the fourth and highest penalty limit. In other words, the Yankees should still have plenty to spend on free agents to try to fill the Soto-shaped hole in the roster. However, it’s worth remembering that signing Fried would cost the Yankees their second and fifth top picks in the 2025 draft in addition to $1MM in international bonus money.
They may hesitate to sign a second free agent who declines the QO and therefore lose their third and sixth highest draft picks. A look at MLBTR’s Contract Tracker reveals that while the Yankees signed three players who opted out of the QO during the 2022-23 season, two of them (Aaron is the judge again Anthony Rizzo) were their free agents and therefore did not cost the club anything other than a considered compensation. To find the last time a club signed so many qualified free agents from other teams in one season, you have to look back to the 2013-14 off-season when the club arrived. Carlos Beltran, Jacoby Ellsburyagain Brian McCann.
That being said, some have compared the club’s approach to the free market in the post-Soto world to their approach that season, when they failed to re-sign a star second baseman. Robinson Cano. That may suggest at least some level of willingness to continue pursuing eligible free agents, especially given the fact that they will receive a compensatory pick for the loss of Soto to help mitigate the loss. Christian Walker, Alex Bregman, Anthony Santanderagain Teoscar Hernandez are among the other eligible free agents the Yankees have been linked to since Soto signed in Queens.
Another way to improve the club’s signings that Fried opens is dealing with a different starting pitcher, and with the club’s rotation now consisting of seven starters it’s hard to imagine the club not moving at least one if not two of the starters below Fried and Cole in the pecking order. Rodon’s poor results in the Bronx and a difficult contract would seem to make a deal involving him unlikely, but any of the team’s four players could be reasonably moved. Stroman and Cortes often found their names in the rumor mill this winter as potential trade targets, though health questions surrounding Cortes and Stroman’s lackluster 2024 campaign could derail the potential return of either pitcher. Schmidt and Gil would both bring back very interesting returns but it’s not clear the Yankees have much desire to move on from either youngster. While the club may hang up one or more of its starters in exchange for major league talent, it’s also possible that a trade could fill out the farm system and make the Yankees more comfortable losing draft picks associated with signing additional eligible free agents.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan first broke down the terms and conditions of the deal. Bob Nightengale of USA Today and Joel Sherman of the New York Post came up with more details.
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