Max Fried, Atlanta Braves. (Photo by Adam Hagee/Getty Images)
If the Atlanta Braves trade Max Fried — which doesn’t seem very likely — they should trade him in for another pitcher of his caliber.
FanSided’s MLB insider Robert Murray spilled the coldest water on some bizarre trade chatter from Max Fried that surfaced about three weeks ago: “The Braves are in winning mode now and with most of their young cores signed to long-term, team-friendly contracts, they have the flexibility of On the payroll and you don’t need a fried trade. They will listen? Absolutely. All teams listen to every player. But a trade is highly unlikely this season.”
ESPN’s Buster Olney also stated that there is little chance of the Braves trading fried, especially considering he is under contract through the 2025 offseason.
But Fried has three more years to go to arbitration, and that will require intense and sometimes unhappy negotiations. Is there any chance Atlanta general manager Alex Anthopoulos could gamble all that on another Ace?
fried He finished second in NL Cy Young voting This year, he won his third consecutive Gold Glove. There’s a reason why he’s getting comparisons to Greg Maddox.
Max Fried Alternatives: The Braves can stay home with Spencer Strider
Did Anthopoulos really have to move at all?
Atlanta actually signed Spencer Strider during the 2030 offseason, which was another genius decision by a front office used to lock up young assets ahead of their refereeing years. Al-Maqli, of course, is already in his country, which makes agreeing to a long-term deal even more difficult.
Stryder finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting this season thanks to an 11-5 record combined with a 2.67 ERA and .995 WHIP. He’s one of the best little pitchers in baseball, and he’s got the electric stuff. If he continues to improve, Strider has ace-level potential, and he won’t miss a win if or when the Braves trade him in to replace a player like Fried.
The most ideal option would be to have them both in rotation, but Anthopoulos often likes to deal with potential problems early on, hence any talk of a fried trade.
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