Atlanta Braves: Max Fried makes his first rehab start

Max Fried began a rehab assignment today with the Gwinnett Stripers. He worked 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, & 1 K. Fried threw 35 pitches.

A great sign to see Fried back throwing after the forearm strain. Those are always worrisome because they can linger or be foreshadowing an even bigger injury. Thankfully, Fried had responded well after each of his throwing programs when he was getting ramped up. Now, we just need to get good news that his arm responds well after this rehab assignment.

With just 35 pitches thrown, it will take a few starts to get him ramped back up. He is basically starting back over and will need to go through Spring Training once again in the minor leagues. Thankfully, the Braves are in the midst of a historical run and have built up a good lead in the division. They also hold a decent lead for the best record in baseball.

Meaning they do not need to rush Max back into the fold. Spencer Strider, Bryce Elder, and Charlie Morton have held down the rotation without Fried. Others like Kolby Allard, Michael Soroka, Jared Shuster, AJ Smith-Shawver, and Dylan Dodd have given the Braves valuable innings as well. This also allows the Braves to give Fried as much time as he needs to build back during his rehab assignment.

Getting Fried back would give the Braves options. They would be getting back their best pitcher and the runner up for the 2022 CY Young award. They would also be able to potentially move Kolby Allard to the bullpen where he could be a weapon as a lefty down in the pen. They could also run a 6 man rotation in September to help limit innings for everyone before heading into October.

Hopefully, there will be no setbacks. We could potentially see Fried step on the mound for the Atlanta Braves by the end of July or early August. Which would be like making a trade without having to make a trade.