Fried 'back to his old self' while pushing for All-Star bid

NEW YORK -- Top Cy Young Award candidate Spencer Strider made one healthy start before undergoing season-ending elbow surgery. So instead of having four starting pitchers at this year’s All-Star Game, the Braves might just have three.

Max Fried strengthened his candidacy as he allowed just one run over six innings while guiding the Braves to a 3-1 win over the Yankees on Sunday afternoon at Yankee Stadium. He now stands with rotation mates Chris Sale and Reynaldo López as legit All-Star candidates.

“I have no idea how the All-Star thing is going to shake out,” Fried said. “But I know we have a lot of deserving guys that I hope make it to [Arlington].”

The Braves rolled through this past week and validated their recent success by taking two of three from the Yankees, who boast the AL’s best winning percentage. Atlanta has won eight of 10 since suffering a season-high fifth straight loss on June 12.

“We’re playing more to our capabilities, but quite honestly, I still don’t think we’re hitting on all cylinders,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said.

Much of this recent success can be attributed to the offense ending its long slumber. Jarred Kelenic continued his torrid stretch as he homered with two outs in Sunday’s third inning. Orlando Arcia also showed some life in his bat with a double that keyed a two-run fifth against Yankees starter Nestor Cortes.

All of this was more than enough for Fried, who kept the Yankees scoreless until Anthony Volpe doubled home Trent Grisham in the sixth. The Braves left-hander ranks ninth among all qualified NL pitchers with a 3.00 ERA.

“Max is definitely one of the best pitchers in the game right now,” Kelenic said.

Fried certainly has been that since allowing 10 earned runs over the first two first innings he pitched this year. If you take away the first inning of his outing against the Phillies on March 30 and the first inning he pitched against the D-backs on April 6, he would have a 2.14 ERA over a span of 88 1/3 innings.

“It was kind of like a freak thing,” Snitker said. “He’s turned it around and he’s back to his old self again. He’s been really, really good.”

Even with those two ugly innings, Fried has credentials that could earn him an All-Star selection when the teams are announced on July 7.

Ranger Suárez currently leads the NL with a 1.75 ERA. He stands with fellow Phillies starters Cristopher Sánchez and Zack Wheeler as All-Star locks. You could argue the Dodgers’ Tyler Glasnow and the Cardinals’ Sonny Gray also deserve this distinction.

Cubs starters Javier Assad and Shota Imanaga rank among the top 10 in ERA. But both have experienced a couple shaky starts over the past few weeks. Another one could further improve Fried’s bid.

Looking only at Atlanta’s candidates, López’s 1.57 ERA would lead MLB if he had enough innings to qualify. A pitcher needs one inning per team game played to qualify. The Braves have played 75 games and López has tallied 74 1/3 innings. He is slated to start again on Tuesday, the team’s 77th game. So if he completes at least five innings (something he has done in 12 of 13 starts), he’ll again qualify to rank among the league leaders for at least a day.

Sale has constructed more than just an incredible comeback story this year. He is pitching like he did five years ago, when injuries derailed his path to Cooperstown. The left-hander ranks seventh among NL pitchers with a 2.91 ERA. He is one of seven MLB pitchers with a 30 percent strikeout rate. Gray, Glasnow and Jack Flaherty are the only other pitchers to have a sub 3.00 ERA with a strikeout rate this high.

And if you’re into wins, Sale and Suárez are tied for the MLB lead with 10.

“These guys are throwing so well,” Fried said. “You just want to be able to do your part. We’ve had a really good stretch with really good pitching.”

The Braves sent six position players to last year’s All-Star Game. Marcell Ozuna might be the only Atlanta hitter at this year’s Midsummer Classic. But this surging club’s rotation might be well represented.