The Yankees announced they’ve placed Max Fried back on the 15-day injured list with a bone bruise in his elbow. They backdated the placement to August 14, the maximum three days. New York will activate Carlos Rodón from the 15-day IL tomorrow, as he’s slated to oppose Shane Baz in the opener of a three-game series at Camden Yards.
This is the same injury designation that shelved Fried in the middle of May and cost him two months. The Yankees haven’t specified whether this is an equally severe issue. They’re off today, so manager Aaron Boone should provide more detail when he meets with the beat tomorrow.
Fried has taken the ball five times in between the injured list stints. He has pitched well, working to a 1.82 ERA with a near-32% strikeout rate during that stretch. Fried expressed some frustration after his last appearance against Seattle, though, saying he was “a little erratic” and “didn’t necessarily have (his) best stuff” (link via Brendan Kuty of The Athletic). He still managed to work five innings of one-run ball, and his 93.3 mph average sinker was in line with his previous marks.
The Yankees have had an excellent pitching staff all season, keeping them on track for a playoff berth despite their offensive struggles without Aaron Judge. No team has a lower rotation ERA than their 3.38 mark on the season, and they’re allowing just 2.69 earned runs per nine since the All-Star Break. Will Warren has had a tough time with the home run ball, but the rest of the rotation has been in excellent form.
Rodón’s return is a silver lining, as they can plug him into the rotation spot. He’s back after a six-week absence due to elbow inflammation. Rodón also missed time to begin the year working back from last fall’s elbow procedure. He has made nine starts with a 3.30 ERA and 26.8% strikeout rate.
