Max Fried's First Start With Yankees Spoiled By Poor Defense

Max Fried made his New York Yankees debut on Saturday, but it did not go smoothly even as their bats unloaded on the Milwaukee Brewers.

Mar 29, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Max Fried (54) pitches in the first inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium. / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

The New York Yankees had a historic day in their win over the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday afternoon. They hit nine home runs, and three on the first three pitches of the game.

However, their incredible display of hitting should not overshadow their performance on the mound.

New York made Max Fried a rich man when they signed him to an eight-year deal this offseason. With Gerrit Cole out for the season, the Yankees will need Fried to step up as their ace.

The left-hander made his debut in pinstripes Saturday, and it was anything but smooth.

The 31-year-old threw just 4.2 innings, so he was ineligible for the win. Along with that, he allowed seven hits, six runs (two earned), struck out four batters and walked two. He threw 94 total pitches.

Fried attacked the Brewers with his fastball. He threw his four-seam and sinker a combined 59 times in the outing. Those two pitches generated just five whiffs on 25 total swings. Additionally, his off-speed pitches resulted in only four whiffs.

The two earned runs is a positive, and he kept the ball in the yard. He could have gone longer in the game, but his defense forced him to throw more pitches as they were sloppy.

As a team, the Yankees made five errors. All five of those mistakes came when the lefty was on the mound. Fried made one of the errors while Pablo Reyes made two errors, Jazz Chisolm made a fielding error and Anthony Volpe threw one away.

Last season, the Yankees made the seventh-most errors in the MLB and they had the seventh-lowest fielding percentage. The defensive woes in the Bronx are nothing new.

Still, New York can not afford to keep making those mistakes. Fried was forced to throw a lot of extra pitches and six total runs scored because of it. As a team, the Yankees allowed nine runs, which usually does not result in a win.

Their defensive mistakes costed New York a World Series in 2024. Continuing to make errors in the field could be the reason the Yankees do not return to the fall classic.

The Yankees were able to combat their errors with an awesome day at the plate. But not every game is played at Yankees Stadium, and their bats are not always going to score 20 runs.

New York did not play well Saturday, but they still won. They are now 2-0 on the season as they go for the series sweep over Milwaukee on Sunday.

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