Yankees Massive Offseason Signing Having Positive Impact This Season

The New York Yankees are already off to a solid start this season, with another series win in the books. 

Coming into the campaign, there was a ton of uncertainty surrounding the team because of a barrage of injuries that took out key players. 

To begin the year, the Yankees had Giancarlo Stanton, Gerrit Cole, Luis Gil, and Clarke Schmidt as some of the most notable players out. 

However, this was a franchise that had a very strong offseason, and they leaned on that early on. 

A lot of credit has to go to Brian Cashman and the front office for their impressive pivot after missing out on bringing back Juan Soto. 

The team was able to bring in Paul Goldschmidt, Devin Williams, Cody Bellinger, and perhaps most notably, Max Fried. 

New York was able to sign the two-time All-Star from the Atlanta Braves to a massive eight-year, $218 million deal. 

At the time, the signing of Fried was to give the Yankees a dynamic one-two punch at the top of the rotation with him and Cole. However, with their ace out for a long time with Tommy John surgery, it will be the southpaw taking the reins as the ace. 

So far, the results have been good for the left-hander through two starts. Fried has a 1-0 record, 10 strikeouts, and a 2.61 ERA. While his first start of the year was mediocre, he looked extremely impressive in shutting down the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

The 31-year-old has never been a dominant strikeout pitcher on the mound, but with a strikeout per inning so far, there has been a slight increase for him in that category as well this year. 

This was something that New York felt he could improve upon when they brought him in, thanks to his devasting curveball. 

It’s encouraging to see the left-hander off to a good start in the Bronx. Pitchers especially sometimes struggle with the pressure of pitching for the Yankees, but Fried seems unphased by it so far. 

As the season continues, New York is going to be relying on him to continue to shine at the top of the rotation. 

While the offense is red-hot, it is covering up a lot of issues with the back-end of the starting rotation. Due to all the injuries, the depth is being tested in that area. 

However, having a pitcher the caliber of Fried to take the ball every five days is a luxury, and he’s making a positive impact so far.