Yankees Consider Starting Max Fried in Playoff Game 1

The New York Yankees are facing a dilemma over who will start as pitcher in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series against the Boston Red Sox. The club is seriously considering using left‑hander Max Fried to open the postseason. However, the prospect of Fried starting the decisive game has sparked internal debate because of his history of inconsistency in October contests.

The Yankees' dilemma between Fried and Schlotzer

The Yankees are preparing to meet the Boston Red Sox in this year’s playoffs and are weighing which strategy to employ for the first matchup. The natural choice to start would be Cam Schlotzer, regarded as the American League’s top pitcher with a 1.95 ERA this season and a 0.56 ERA against the Red Sox. Yet New York is studying the option of resting Schlotzer for Game 2, which would also keep him available for a potential Game 5 in the Division Series. That opens the door for Max Fried as a strong candidate to start Game 1.

Max Fried’s performance during the regular season

Since debuting in the majors in 2017 with the Atlanta Braves, left‑hander Max Fried has proved to be a talented pitcher, posting a career ERA of 3.01. In his first season in the Bronx last year, he recorded a 2.86 ERA. This season, Fried has maintained consistency with a 2.80 ERA over 20 starts, cementing his importance in the Yankees rotation.

Postseason challenges for the left‑hander

Despite his impressive regular‑season numbers, Fried carries a worrisome postseason track record. In his playoff career he has a 5.31 ERA over 22 appearances, 14 of them as a starter. Last year, the left‑hander allowed seven runs and 12 hits in 9.1 innings pitched in the playoffs, with an alarming 1.821 WHIP. His overall postseason WHIP stands at 1.533, raising questions about whether he can be trusted to open the series.

Other options for New York’s rotation

Fried’s tendency to dip in performance during the playoffs has been compared to that of Clayton Kershaw, another pitcher with an unusual postseason history. If the Yankees decide not to start Schlotzer in order to focus on a long‑term strategy, another alternative mentioned is Gerrit Cole. Although Cole struggled in the final month of the regular season, he has shown improvement in his recent outings and boasts a better October record than Fried.

With information from roundtable.io.